HC Deb 16 December 1992 vol 216 cc427-8
11. Mr. Ernie Ross

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met representatives of Scottish Enterprise to discuss the business plans of local enterprise companies.

Mr. Stewart

My right hon. Friend and I meet Scottish Enterprise regularly to discuss a wide range of issues, including the activities and achievements of the local enterprise companies. However, consideration of the business plans of local enterprise companies is a matter between Scottish Enterprise and the individual companies concerned.

Mr. Ross

Apparently, the Government do not intend to listen to Sir Brian Wolfson, the man selected by the Tory Cabinet to establish the training and enterprise councils and the local enterprise companies. Sir Brian has criticised the attitude of voluntarism being taken to both TECs and LECs, and also the failure to establish a training levy of companies. But will the Minister at least listen to Scottish Enterprise Tayside? That body told me last month that it was experiencing increasing tension in its efforts to provide high-quality training for a special needs group, and that, if its budget were cut, it might reluctantly have to sacrifice both quality and quantity.

Mr. Stewart

This year, Scottish Enterprise Tayside received a budget of £23 million. Its budget increased by 5 per cent.—a larger increase than was received by any other LEC except one. As the hon. Gentleman will know, Scottish Enterprise's planned budget for next year is £9 million up on this year's plans, and an additional £20 million is expected from the European regional development fund. There will be no reduction in the overall resources available to the Scottish Enterprise network.

Mr. Kynoch

Does my hon. Friend agree that the 11 per cent. increase for enterprise and environmental expenditure by Scottish Enterprise and the LECs that was announced last week by our right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will enable those bodies to continue, at local level and with local expertise, the good work that they have carried out since their very recent inception less than two years ago?

Mr. Stewart

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The substantial increase in resources for the environmental and enterprise budgets has been warmly welcomed by the local enterprise network because it offers it flexibility between its different budget heads. I have no doubt that the excellent work that the local enterprise companies have done in the past two years will continue, and that, as they gain experience, they will be able to lever in increasing resources from the private sector.

Dr. Godman

The Minister spoke of the achievements of local enterprise companies, but Renfrewshire Enterprise has achieved nothing on the lower Clyde. Many people are deeply concerned about the decision of Auld's the Bakers to move to Inchinnan. Did it receive no help from Renfrewshire Enterprise officials to locate within the Inverclyde enterprise zone? How valuable is the enterprise zone when a local company is forced to move a few miles away? Will he investigate this and other cases that reveal the pathetic performance of officials of Renfrewshire Enterprise on the lower Clyde?

Mr. Stewart

I do not understand that question because Inchinnan is in Renfrewshire; the company is moving within the territory covered by Renfrewshire Enterprise. That does not seem to be a matter of great criticism of Renfrewshire Enterprise. [Interruption.] I wish that the hon. Member would allow me to answer the question. The hon. Member for Greenock and Port Glasgow (Dr. Godman) and I have had a number of meetings about the Inverclyde enterprise zone. We are aware that there have been some difficulties, but I assure him that Scottish Enterprise and Renfrewshire Enterprise are doing all that they can to ensure that the zone is a success.

Mr. McLeish

When will this humbug and hypocrisy end? Why is £20 million being cut from Scottish Enterprise's training budget this year, including a 13 per cent. cut in youth training and a 7 per cent. cut in adult training? Does the Minister accept that, with high unemployment, deepening recession and the guarantee for young people not being met, we should be spending more on training rather than less? When will the Government put the real needs of Scotland first instead of Ministers being content to hang on to the coat tails of English employment Ministers?

Mr. Stewart

If the hon. Gentleman had listened to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State yesterday morning, he would know perfectly well that Scotland's share of Britain's unemployment has fallen. The implication of the hon. Gentleman's statement is that he would have preferred it to rise. When shall we see an end to the humbug and hypocrisy of Labour Members about training, because the Government have increased real resources for training two and a half times in real terms compared with the Labour Government, yet every training initiative that the Government have taken has been opposed by Opposition Members?