Helping Hard Working People and Reversing Labour's Tax On Jobs

Gordon Brown's National Insurance rise is a tax rise that hit ordinary working people the hardest. It is a tax rise that hits companies and risks jobs at the same time as the recovery is so fragile. That is why the CBI described the rise as a "serious mistake [that] will hold back job creation and growth". The Small Business Federation described it as an "attack on jobs" that "will cause deeper unemployment."

When we need to be doing all we can to encourage job creation, throwing a tax rise on ordinary, hard working people and their jobs is both economically ridiculous and morally wrong.

That is why a Conservative Government will stop the planned National insurance increases for anybody earning less than £35,000. This means that 7 out of 10 working people will be week better off, with the poorest benefiting the most. Nobody will be worse off.

Reversing Labour's tax on jobs will be crucial to helping hard working people and encouraging job creation.

The Banks Must Pay Back To The Taxpayer Every Penny From The Bailout

The behaviour of the banking sector brought immense damage to the British and global economy. The taxpayer had to bail out the banks for their folly as they came close to collapse. Indeed, the Treasury estimated in April 2009 that there may be a loss to the taxpayer of between £20 billion and £50 billion because of the banking bailout.

Now, less than two years after highly paid bankers paid a large part in bringing the global economy to the verge of collapse, multi million bonuses are being paid again and the banks are failing to meet their obligations to provide loans to business to help get the economy moving again. I have made clear before that this is simply not good enough. It is also time to make clear that the banks need to pay back to the taxpayer every penny used to rescue them in the bailout package.

Gordon Brown spent 13 years cosying up to the banks and allowing our economy to become terribly unbalanced in favour of financial services. His lack of regulation created the conditions for the banking crisis. In the same time, we have seen over 95,000 manufacturing jobs lost in our region alone and the economic gap between the North East and other regions has grown.

We need bold leadership over financial regulation and bold leadership to get the back for taxpayers every penny we put in to rescue the banking sector. We need to tackle the vested interests in the banking sector. That is why we need to introduce a new bank levy to get our money back from the banks and to protect taxpayers in the future. It is why we must also seek international agreement on an international banking levy.

More Must be Done To Tackle Unemployment As The North-South Divide Widens

Unemployment has affected so many people in North Durham. So many people I speak to have either been made unemployed themselves or have had friends or members of their family who have been made unemployed over the past few years. It is clear that we must do more to create jobs and tackle unemployment.

The unemployment figures announced last week show that, in North Durham, unemployment is over 140% higher than it was in September 2007. The North East has the highest rate of unemployment in the country and there is a growing North-South divide.

We need bold action to tackle the jobs crisis caused by Gordon Brown's recession. That is why Conservatives are proposing an additional 400,000 apprenticeships, training places and placements, as well as an additional 50,000 Further Education places and 10,000 Higher Education places. We also need to do more to incentivise business to create jobs and create a world class all age careers service. This would be the decisive action we need to tackle unemployment.

Now Even Barnett Says The Barnett Formula Should Be Reformed

The Barnett Formula is thoroughly unfair on the North East and needs to be reformed. It is yet another example of how the North East has been let down by this Government. We know that the North East receives £8,156 per head and has a lower GDP per capita than Scotland, which receives £9,032 per head from the formula.

The North East has not had a fair deal from the Barnett Formula and neither former North Eastern MP, Tony Blair, or Gordon Brown have lifted a finger to help the hard working of the North East who placed so much faith in their Government.

And now even Barnett himself has come out against his own Barnett Formula. Lord Barnett has said that reform was "vital" for the future of the country. He has told a Select Committee that we must "do something about it soon."

He is, of course, right. We should have a needs based formula that is fair on the North East. People in the North East have had quite enough of being taken for granted and are ready to elect proud North Easterners, such as myself, who will stand up for our region.

North Eastern Manufacturing Jobs Have Been Slashed Under Labour

Manufacturing should be an integral part of our regional and our national economy. As I blogged the other day, the North East should play a leading role in the development of an export led economy, with our region being a trailblazer in terms of green industry and high tech manufacturing.

This makes it even more troubling that manufacturing has been hit so badly in the past 13 years. Since Labour were elected in 1997, almost 95,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost in our region. It is extremely worrying that, in the same time period, the number of advanced manufacturing jobs (in the medium to high tech sectors) has fallen by 56 per cent. Our area has a proud manufacturing tradition and an enormous potential to be a world leading manufacturing region. Sadly, Labour have not shown the vision, the ideas or the actions to ensure that our region meets its potential. It should also be noted that our balance of trade has nose dived in January, as the chart below (originally produced by Left Foot Forward and taken from the latest ONS figures) illustrates:

We need bold ideas, real vision and real leadership to ensure that the North East fulfills its potential to be a world leading manufacturing area. That has not come over the past 13 years. It is time that the Labour establishment in the North East steps aside to make way for proud North Easterners who bring vision and determination to ensure our region fulfills its economic potential.

The North East Must Be At The Forefront Of High Tech Manufacturing

Here in the North East, we have a fantastic tradition of engineering and manufacturing. I believe that we can build on this proud tradition to be at the forefront of a new wave of high tech manufacturing and green industry jobs. That will happen if we have the imagination and if we have the vision to ensure that the North Eastern economy becomes a trailblazer for the next generation of new industries.

Yesterday, James Dyson set out his report aimed at making Britain Europe's leading generator of new technology and Europe's leading creator of high tech jobs. It made clear that we should do much more to encourage high tech businesses, as well as ensuring that we take the best new ideas from the universities into the marketplace.

In the North East, we have a peerless heritage of innovation and engineering. We have the natural resources, the people, the skills and the universities to be major players in a new, high-tech manufacturing economy. Sadly, in recent years we have seen the economic gap between us and other regions increase. We need dedication, vision and leadership to become trailblazers in high tech and green industries and regain our rightful place as an economic and manufacturing collosus.

6 Music Should Be Saved For The Sake Of Alternative Music

I’m a huge supporter of public service broadcasting. I think that the BBC is one of the great British institutions and one of our greatest cultural exports. It is true that the BBC should not be paying multi million salaries to entertainment presenters. Sadly, the decision to axe 6 Music and the Asian Network represents a complete derogation of the BBC’s duty as a public service broadcaster.

6 Music should not be judged on listener figures alone. It provides a platform for alternative music that would not gain a platform in the commercial sector. 6 Music performs a crucial role in providing a platform for new or unsigned bands that they would not gain in the commercial sector. Providing an opening for new and unsigned bands and providing a stage for alternative music that would not otherwise gain exposure is surely the very essence of public service broadcasting.

Indie music, alternative music and alt country are all well served by 6 Music in a way that they are not well served and would not be well served by the commercial sector. They have every right to be regarded as culturally and socially important as other forms of music that might be played on Radio 3. Indeed, rock n’ roll and indie music continues to be a great British cultural success story and the likes of 6 Music are crucial to ensuring that this British creative industry continues to thrive.

Without a radio station set up to encourage and nourish alternative music, the commercial sector is more likely to play popular, 'middle of the road' music than music that genuinely pushes boundaries. 6 Music encourages musical creativity and innovation.

The BBC should re-consider the decision, for the sake of public service broadcasting and for the sake of British music.