Small Businesses, London (Hansard, 24 November 1993)

§ 2. Mr. Shersby
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is his policy for encouraging the expansion of small businesses in the Greater London area.

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (Mr. Patrick McLoughlin)
The Department provides a range of services in London and elsewhere designed to allow small businesses to operate with the maximum freedom and efficiency. In particular, the Business Link network that my Department is helping to develop will greatly strengthen the delivery of those services together with other business support organisations at local level.

§ Mr. Shersby
Does my hon. Friend agree that most small firms are well managed and if they were not, they would probably not be in business? Will he take every opportunity to relieve them of the burdens of paperwork that afflicts them as part of the deregulation initiative and give the House an example of the kind of burdens that are to be removed?

§ Mr. McLoughlin
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for what he has said. As for the examples for which he asked, he will have to wait for the publication of the deregulation Bill to which my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade has just referred.

§ Mr. Gapes
Does the Minister agree that the biggest problem for small businesses in Greater London is the impact of the recession? In my constituency, where one adult male in six is currently unemployed, there is certainly no glimmer of hope: unemployment has doubled in the past five years, and is twice as high now as it was when the Prime Minister came to office.

§ Mr. McLoughlin
The hon. Gentleman overlooks the important point that small businesses contribute to employment opportunities. Given the whingeing that we hear from Opposition Members, it is no surprise that such businesses have no confidence in the Labour party.

§ Mr. John Marshall
Does my hon. Friend agree that the greatest boost for small firms in Greater London will come from a more prosperous economy? Will not those firms welcome the fact that interest rates are at their lowest for 25 years, and the fact that inflation is at its lowest for a generation?

§ Mr. McLoughlin
My hon. Friend is, of course, correct. Those underlying factors are giving great confidence to businesses—including small businesses—not just in London, but throughout the United Kingdom.

§ Mr. Nigel Griffiths
I welcome all measuress to help small businesses, but why have the Government done so little to crack down on the banks that are persecuting so many small businesses? Is he aware of the survey carried out by the Forum of Private Business? [Interruption.] Conservative Members sneer at its 21,000 membership, 436 but the survey showed that, in the past six months, 50 per cent. of respondents had found that banks were to introduce tougher charging policies. When will the Minister crack down on those banks, and eliminate practices that are doing so much harm to so many small businesses and individuals?

§ Mr. McLoughlin
What the hon. Gentleman never tells us is what his party would do. The simple fact is that, since we have been in government, some 400,000 new businesses have started up each year. That is a far greater success than was ever achieved during the socialist years of Labour government.