Enterprise and New Towns (Scotland) Bill (Hansard, 25 July 1990)

§ Lord Denham
My Lords, I have it in command from Her Majesty the Queen that Her Majesty, having been informed of the purport of the Enterprise and New Towns (Scotland) Bill, has consented to place her prerogative and interest so far as they are affected by the Bill at the disposal of Parliament for the purposes of the Bill.

§ Lord Sanderson of Bowden
My Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a third time.
The Enterprise and New Towns (Scotland) Bill will create Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise and enable them to delegate appropriate functions and powers to a network of local enterprise companies. It sets out a broad framework within which the new bodies and the local enterprise companies will have as much flexibility as possible to tackle the challenges and opportunities of building up a stronger Scottish economy.
There is no doubt as to the widespread enthusiasm for these proposals across the spectrum of Scottish opinion. As I said at Second Reading, we have been delighted by the calibre of those who have come forward to form the 22 prospective local enterprise companies throughout Scotland. These consortia are all now drawing up their business plans. I am confident that 1991 will prove to be an important marker in the development of the Scottish economy as 1449 Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the local enterprise companies set about their tasks.
Noble Lords have given this Bill careful consideration at Second Reading, in Committee and at Report stage. I am grateful to all those who have taken part and particularly to the noble Lord, Lord Carmichael of Kelvingrove, for his constructive approach in raising some key issues. I am glad to have the opportunity to restate our commitment to give Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise a strong strategic role and to reaffirm the importance of both new bodies and the local enterprise companies working in partnership with local authorities and other bodies.
The integration of training and economic development functions is central to the Scottish Enterprise concept. I was grateful to my noble friend Lady Carnegy of Lour for her contributions on the importance of training. The wide-ranging powers in the Bill will enable Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to tackle, through the local enterprise companies, the particular needs of each local labour market.
I was glad also to have the opportunity, in response to speeches from my noble friend Lord Selkirk, the noble Lord, Lord Mackie of Benshie, the noble Earl, Lord Perth, and others, to put on record our commitment to a rural dimension for Scottish Enterprise and the local enterprise companies. We shall expect them to tackle the problems and opportunities in rural as well as urban areas.
My noble friend Lord Gray of Contin highlighted the needs of the Highlands and Islands. In creating Highlands and Islands Enterprise we recognise the distinctive nature of the differences that exist in that part of Scotland.
The Bill also prepares for the winding up of the Scottish new town development corporations. I pay tribute to the past work of the noble Lord, Lord Hughes, and his work on the Bill. He has special interests in the new towns. We certainly heard from him during the passage of the Bill. We now look forward to achieving a smooth transition to new arrangements while maintaining the economic momentum of the new towns.
The Bill is a landmark in the evolution of the Scottish economy. Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise will help, I am sure, to stimulate both existing and new businesses and act as a catalyst in reskilling our workforce. I beg to move.

§ Lord Carmichael of Kelvingrove
My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for going through the Bill and for the nice words that he said about all those who took part in the debates on it. If, as he suggested, I raised key issues he will also be aware that they did not seem to unlock any real response from the Government.
He is well aware that we were disappointed that the 1450 Enterprise and New Towns (Scotland) Bill had no social remit. There was a reference to the rural areas but no provision on the face of the Bill. The reference came from the Minister. That added some weight because the Minister has sympathy with those issues. However, we would have preferred such provision to be on the face of the Bill.
We are not happy with the training function of the new enterprises. As many Members of the House said, there could be a tendency for short-term training to meet short-term shortages whereas we hope that training will be more fundamental. We can only hope that the reorganisation of the Scottish Development Agency will be profitable and worthwhile to Scotland. However, as I said at an earlier stage, I do not see why we need to shake up those aspects that were going rather well.
On the new towns, we did not resolve one of the main concerns. The Government have spoken about giving greater choice to people, but during discussions on the Bill there was almost a growing dislike of local government. Tenants were not given a real choice when they changed their tenancy from the new towns corporations. The Minister will be well aware, as we are, that all the surveys indicated that there was a very strong feeling among the tenants that they would like to choose the local authorities.
However, the Minister showed great charm and helpfulness during the Committee. Unfortunately he also showed his usual firmness with his remit, which after all is his job. I believe that we gained as much as we could by way of promises from the Minister, and probably more than we would have done from most other Ministers. I am disappointed that such promises are not on the face of the Bill. However, we shall look forward to seeing whether this measure becomes a landmark in Scottish economic and training development, as we all hope that it will be. We have grave doubts whether it will meet the challenge. I wish God-speed to the Bill.

§ Lord Hughes
My Lords, I do not need to add much to what the noble Lord, Lord Carmichael, has said other than that I agree with everything he said.
I should perhaps refer to two successes of the Minister. I congratulate him on the first: that he has survived the trauma of Monday and is still with us as the Minister of State for Scotland. The second success is one that I predicted but on which I cannot congratulate him: that he has successfully carried out the brief that he was given to carry the Bill through this House with no change whatever. It is his success and our regret.

§ Lord Sanderson of Bowden
My Lords, perhaps I may briefly thank both noble Lords for their comments. I am rather surprised that the noble Lord, Lord Carmichael, thinks that training is going in the wrong direction. The fact that training functions come to Scotland proves that we are trying to devolve powers in the proper way. I believe that the combination of training and enterprise which the new bodies will have will be helpful for Scotland.
1451 I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Hughes, for what he has said. I know that he would have wished for more "give", in particular on the new towns issue. However, we debated the matter very thoroughly. I am most grateful to him for bringing to the debates his knowledge of the new towns scene and for giving us the benefit of his advice. I commend the Bill.