HC Deb 09 July 1987 vol 119 cc497-9
1. Mr. Patrick McNair-Wilson

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much self-employment has grown in the United Kingdom since 1979.

17. Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much self-employment has grown in the United Kingdom since 1979.

The Economic Secretary to the Treasury (Mr. Peter Lilley)

The latest published figures show that self-employment in the United Kingdom has increased by over three-quarters of a million since 1979.

Mr. McNair-Wilson

I congratulate my hon. Friend on his appointment and on the very encouraging answer that he has just given. Does he agree that self-employment and small businesses can provide a powerful force for reviving commercial and business efforts within the depressed inner cities as well as elsewhere? Will he please assure me that he and his Department will do what they can to remove the petty bureaucracy which still stands in the way of many who would like to start up on their own?

Mr. Lilley

I thank my hon. Friend for his remarks. He is absolutely correct in saying that there could be no greater benefit to the inner cities than a continuing growth in self-employment. He is also correct in saying that the Government will do all in their power to remove obstacles to that growth.

Mrs. Bottomley

Such a dramatic increase in self-emloyment figures must be a tribute to the success of the Government's economic policies in promoting enterprise. What information does my hon. Friend have on how those figures are spread throughout the country? Is it not important to encourage self-emloyment in those areas hardest hit by the loss of traditional industries?

Mr. Lilley

My hon. Friend is right. The growth has been quite dramatic. It is up 40 per cent. since 1979. The growth in the region is much the same as in the south-east and the south-west. The growth in the regions is particularly encouraging, because, for every self-employed person, in due course more jobs will be created as they in turn take on employees. That is why we are encouraging, wherever we can, the growth of self-employment in the areas that have been hardest hit by the decline in the traditional industries.

Ms. Short

Is the Minister aware that it is true that there has been a remarkable growth in self-employment, but that if we look at the historical record since 1945, we see that in every period when unemployment grew. self-employment grew? I invite him to check that. If he looks at the figures for tax and VAT, he will see that the self-employed are overwhelmingly very low-paid. It is not a real measure of a successful enterprise economy. A lot of it is the desperation of people struggling along because it is their only alternative to unemployment.

Mr. Lilley

The hon. Lady is right in one respect. Under the Labour Government unemployment doubled and self-employment fell. However, she is incorrect in suggesting that a similar pattern has occurred under this Government. Self-employment has increased by 40 per cent., which is five times the increase in self-employment that has occurred over the past 30 years.

Mr. Brandon-Bravo

I join my colleagues in wishing my hon. Friend every success in his new position. May I draw his attention to the fact that, although self-employment has grown fast in this country, it is still only one third of that in countries such as Italy? My hon. Friend will be aware that Italy's new economy has had many compliments paid to it in recent years. Is there a link between Italy's healthy economy and the mileage that still exists for self-employment in this country?

Mr. Lilley

I have no doubt that the self-employed in Italy contribute to that country's economic growth. However, this country's economy grew more rapidly over the period of the last Parliament than that of Italy, and we shall continue to encourage the growth of self-employment wherever it is appropriate in the United Kingdom.