Catherine McKinnell
MP for Newcastle upon Tyne North · Labour · United Kingdom
“The family of a terminally ill constituent contacted me in desperation last month after trying to resolve the pension issues of their family member since January. She died yesterday, with her pension still unresolved. Can the Minister be more specific for that family about what will be done to resolve this issue?”
“As the UK trade envoy to Italy, I thank the Secretary of State for confirming the GCAP funding in his statement. As MP for Newcastle upon Tyne North, I add my voice to those who want to see this as an opportunity to genuinely spread investment and opportunity that will build strength and resilience in our people right across the UK—they a…”
“This report is welcome, but that does not make its existence any less tragic. Far too many mothers and babies have been failed, including mothers like my constituent Amie, who late last year was turned away repeatedly, despite reporting reduced movements. Her baby Seren was born stillborn.”
“Failures to address these issues have significant effects, both on the public finances and on the most vulnerable people in society, and, indeed, they are issues that are often reflected in our constituency mailboxes. I was contacted recently by a young woman who had reported child sexual abuse to the police last year.”
“Her husband was the victim of an assault by the defendant, who had raped his wife. They were forced to wait four hours for the trial to begin. They were eventually told that the defendant would arrive and that the delay to his delivery was causing the delay, but it had a knock-on effect on additional days in court.”
“Friend has said, we need a court estate that is fit for purpose in order to maximise the use of these additional days. I too have visited my local court, in this instance Newcastle Crown court.”
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“I beg to move, That this House has considered e-petitions 333869 and 309851, relating to Covid-19 restrictions on gyms and sport. It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Mundell. The two petitions we are debating have a combined total of almost 1 million signatures, and they speak to a very deep concern: that we are sitting on a ticking time bomb when it comes to physical and mental health. The first petition, on preventing the closure of gyms, was started by Liam Brannon from north Lincolnshire and has over 614,000 signatures. The second, to exempt golf courses from covid-19 restrictions, was started by Monty Florin from Donnington and has over 257,000 signatures. During this pandemic, it has become very clear just how much people value sport and exercise.”
“The Government should commit not only to ensuring that every community that had those facilities before the pandemic still has them afterwards, but to building on those facilities, making them even better, so that we come out of the pandemic knowing not only that sport, health, fitness and mental wellbeing matter in this country, but that we are truly going to build back fitter and even better than before. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered e-petitions 333869 and 309851, relating to Covid-19 restrictions on gyms and sport.”
“I really hope that the Minister will take that away and that, once the Government have been able to iron out all the detail on the relaxations being announced, they will give greater clarity, certainty and reassurance to those sports clubs that they will not be open just a matter of weeks, until another spike after Christmas. That spike could come as a result of the relaxations, but also because of the inability to track and trace the virus properly through a system that truly works. My final point, which has been made by colleagues, is about how vital it is that we have resources in place to ensure that every community—not just in those where people can pay—can keep a whole variety of sports, gyms, leisure centres and swimming pools afloat.”
“I absolutely appreciate—we all appreciate—that we cannot predict the virus or how things will go, but we have learned some things over the last nine months. I would have thought that one of the lessons that we have learned it that it is absolutely fundamental that people stay fit, active and healthy. That is not a nice-to-have or a leisure activity, but a fundamental part of people’s health, mental wellbeing and ability to stay resilient and resistant to the virus. I had hoped that the Minister would be much clearer that any of the relaxations announced today will not mean that the very sports that are delighted about finally being able to reopen may have to close down again in January. That is just unthinkable, to be perfectly honest.”
“I thank right hon. and hon. Members for what has been an excellent debate, putting the arguments on behalf of all the petitioners who live in our constituencies and many who are not represented in the Chamber because there are not enough spaces for all Members to come and speak. Members of the public have been emailing their MPs in huge numbers, which is a powerful way of conveying the strength of feeling on this issue. My personal inbox is now pinging with emails from local sports clubs—those for my children’s swimming lessons and my daughter’s gymnastics—that are getting in touch to say how delighted they are that they will be able to reopen. That is why it is hugely concerning that we are not really getting any certainty from the Government that that could be long lasting in any way.”
“Community leisure facilities are the most accessible way for people to get fit and active, yet we face the real prospect of sports facilities in clubs in more affluent areas of the country enjoying reopening post pandemic, whereas those in the more deprived and disadvantaged communities remaining unviable. In Newcastle, we are very concerned that the West Denton swimming pool, for example, is at risk of remaining permanently closed due to the financial impact of the pandemic, despite the area facing some of the worst health inequalities. This cannot happen, so will the Minister commit to ensuring today that funding will be given for community leisure facilities post pandemic to ensure that sport remains genuinely accessible for all?”
“The Antisemitism Policy Trust, which provides the secretariat to the all-party parliamentary group against antisemitism, which I co-chair, has produced evidence outlining how hateful online materials can lead to violent hate crime offline. A code of practice on hate crime, with systems-level advice to start-ups and minimum standards for companies, will go some way towards creating a safer world. There is much more in the Bill that needs serious consideration, but as a minimum we need to see a code of practice for hate crime drawn up and given the same status as that for child sexual exploitation and abuse and terrorism, and I hope today that the Minister can give us some reassurance that this will be taken seriously.”
“The White Paper proposes establishing a new duty of care for users, overseen by an independent regulator, making it clear that fulfilling a duty of care means following codes of practice. The Government have rightly proposed two statutory codes—on sexual exploitation and abuse and on terrorism. Will the Minister now commit to bringing forward another code of practice on hate crime and wider harms? Without such a code, any duty of care for users will be limited to what the site’s terms and conditions allow. Terms and conditions are insufficient, as the Government acknowledge; they can be patchy and poorly applied.”
“I want to address as well some of the most troubling material available online—material that has too often spilled over into the offline world with tragic consequences. From your internet browser today you could access video that shows graphic footage of real-event stabbings before alleging that the attack was, in fact, a Jewish plot. If you were so inclined, you could watch a five-hour-long video that alleges a Jewish conspiracy to introduce communism around the world—10,000 people already have. I could go on. These videos and others like it are easily discoverable on some of the so-called alternative platforms that have become safe havens for terrorist propaganda, hate material and covid-19 disinformation, so it is crucial, when the Government finally bring their online harms Bill forward, for it to have teeth.”
“This vital work is indeed taking far too long, and so much so that the Petitions Committee has launched a new inquiry on tackling online abuse following up our report in the last Parliament and looking at potential solutions for reducing crime and preventing it. Although the Government’s response to our previous report was positive, regrettably its online harms White Paper failed to address most of our concerns in relation to the impact on disabled people. The new inquiry will therefore continue to scrutinise the Government’s response to online abuse and press Ministers on the action that needs to be taken. We would welcome evidence from campaigners, legal professionals, social media companies and members of the public.”
“The union learning fund is particularly, and uniquely, well equipped to support those workers who might not otherwise be engaged with workplace learning, ensuring that everyone can get access to the opportunities and that no one is left behind. I urge the Government to listen to hon. Members today and to reconsider the decision—and to continue the vital union learning fund.”
“As well as being vital for staff development, it is crucial to the economy to ensure that we have the workforce to meet skills requirements and develop the UK’s competitive edge in key industries in an increasingly uncertain and onward-developing world. The difficulties caused by the pandemic, and the growing number of redundancies, will leave many needing to retrain. They will turn to their union learning reps to support them in that. Lifelong learning is more important than ever, which is why the decision to cut the union learning fund is disappointing. It seems incredibly short-sighted and frankly unfathomable. It is also completely at odds with the Prime Minister’s professed intentions with respect to a lifetime skills guarantee, and to build back better—and, indeed, to level up—after covid-19.”
“There has been the most significant shift to digital working in our lifetime in just the last few months, and in my local authority in Newcastle learning zones have been set up so that staff can get online—many for the first time—so that they can continue to provide services. It is union learning reps who have provided the human support to make it possible and support people with digital skills. We know how important that is. I do not know about other hon. Members, but since we have moved to a more virtual Parliament I have been on the phone to the Parliamentary Digital Service almost every day. We need people to speak to, and that is the role that many union learning reps have similarly played for local government. The pandemic has supercharged the process, with so many people having to transition so quickly to working remotely.”
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham South (Lilian Greenwood) for securing this important debate and for making a compelling case for the union learning fund. We live in an increasingly uncertain world where employment is more insecure, and long-established industries are giving way to new sectors and new forms of working. One of the most powerful tools that we have to help workers through the uncertainty and navigate the swirling tides of economic change is education and training. We need to be able to help workers throughout their working life to retrain, to reskill, and to update their capabilities so that they can take on new jobs. Digital skills in particular are necessary in modern workplaces of all kinds, and in all fields. To take one example, local government has needed to make the changes quickly.”
“I wish to put on record that, although I admire the fact that my hon. Friend has secured this debate, which is very pertinent to Leicester, the issue very much affects all of the consumers who purchase items from these retailers. The items are manufactured often in Leicester and procured in Leicester, and it is vital for everybody to know that these goods are being produced in the right way and that the workers are being treated properly when we make those purchases.”
“Secondly, will he ask his officials to explore the possibility of the UK requesting one of two international partner seats in the new middle east partnership for peace advisory board? Thirdly, at the earliest opportunity after 20 January, will he discuss with the Biden Administration how the middle east partnership fund for peace might evolve into a truly international institution? This week marks the 35th anniversary of the signing of the Anglo-Irish Agreement which set in motion the establishment of the International Fund for Ireland and set us on the path to the Good Friday agreement. We know the transformative impact of peace-building work and we know we have seen it in Ireland. I urge the Government to draw on this experience and commit to establishing this international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace.”
“The legislation not only provides two seats for international partners on the middle east partnership for peace fund advisory board but includes provisions that allow it to evolve into a new, truly multilateral institution. The arrival of the Biden Administration, together with the recent exciting moves we have witnessed in the middle east towards normalising relations with Israel, provides a huge opportunity which, if the UK is to live up to the Government’s global Britain ambitions, we should surely seize. In closing, will the Minister provide three undertakings today? First, will he meet me and other colleagues to discuss reinstating the UK’s financial support for peace-building work and reinvigorating support for the international fund?”
“Sadly, however, the Government have allowed the People for Peaceful Change programme to lapse and with it the UK’s investment in peacebuilding work in Israel and Palestine. The Government have also failed to follow up on their commitment to support an international fund, despite positive developments in the US, where the Middle East Partnership for Peace Act is expected to become law at the end of this year. This legislation, which passed the House of Representatives in July and is now progressing through the Senate, has strong bipartisan support and will establish a middle east partnership for peace fund. The fund will provide $110 million over the next five years for peacebuilding projects, with a new joint investment for peace initiative providing an additional $140 million in support to Palestinian-owned small and medium enterprises.”
“I commend Labour Friends of Israel for their tireless campaigning, which stretches back nearly a decade, to increase UK funding on co-existence and their work over the past five years in support of an international fund. Indeed, nearly four years ago I was delighted to join a cross-party group of sponsors who backed a Bill presented by the former Member for Enfield North, Joan Ryan, which called on the Government to promote the international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace. Televised campaigning persuaded the Government in 2017 to establish a new three-year programme—People for Peaceful Change—which invested £3 million in co-existence work. It also succeeded in securing a commitment from the Government in 2018 to support the international fund, making the UK the first country to endorse this concept.”
“Designed by the Alliance for Middle East Peace, a coalition of more than 90 Palestinian and Israeli grassroots organisations, the fund would seek to leverage and increase public and private contributions funding joint economic development and civic society projects that promote peace, co-existence and reconciliation between the two peoples. It would be an independent organisation, supported by public and private donors, and it explicitly does not seek to replace any support that would otherwise be provided either directly to the Palestinian Authority or to Israel. Its goal is ambitious—to raise levels of investment nearly tenfold to $200 million a year. Those contributions would come from the US, Europe and the rest of the international community, including the Arab world, and the private sector.”
“Despite widespread and correct recognition, and the importance of laying the economic foundations for peace, such civic society work has too often gone unacknowledged by the international community and it has suffered from huge under-investment. Indeed, thanks in part to cuts by the Trump Administration, international investment in people-to-people work has fallen since 2017 from an already pitiful £37 million a year to £26 million a year now. An international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace would provide that much-needed focus and investment to enable co-existence projects to operate at scale and to amplify their impact.”
“USAID studies are supported by the findings of a 2017 report by Ned Lazarus, a professor at George Washington university whose work drew on 20 years of evaluation data and extensive field work. It found that peacebuilding projects create peacebuilders and constituencies for peace, change attitudes and create empathy and trust between the two peoples. For example, nearly one fifth of participants in a programme by the NGO Seeds of Peace went on to dedicate their careers to peace-building work, and 90% of participants in a Near East Foundation project said that they trusted the other community more after being on the programme. A programme led by Parents Circle-Families Forum found that 80% of participants were more willing to work for peace and 71% felt more trust and empathy towards the other community.”
“A 2019 academic study carried out for USAID—the United States Agency for International Development—which evaluated four programmes in which the US had invested found that, three to five years after their involvement, the project participants continued to hold positive feelings about those from the “other” side of the divide, had an increased belief that peace was possible and reported that their perceptions had been altered by the programme. That study reinforced an earlier USAID evaluation that suggested that those participating in people-to-people work had higher levels of trust and co-operation, more conflict resolution values and fewer feelings of aggression and loneliness.”
“It provided widespread popular support for the Good Friday agreement, and then helped to sustain it through the many challenges that it has faced in the subsequent years. Northern Ireland’s example teaches us that it is never too early to begin investing in and building constituencies for peace. In short, peacebuilding is a vital prerequisite to peacemaking. Since the advent of Oslo, a plethora of grassroots groups that bring Israelis and Palestinians together have sprung up in a wide variety of fields—sports clubs for children and young people, as well as cultural interface and tech and environmental projects. There is now a strong evidence base from both academic research and government evaluations to suggest that such projects work.”
“We should consider how any future settlement can best be sustained. Although the two conflicts are very different in both their causes and their character, the example of Northern Ireland provides important lessons. In the mid-1980s, during the darkest days of the troubles, when the prospects for peace and an end to violence seemed so distant, the International Fund for Ireland was established. Over the past three decades it has invested more than £700 million in peace-building work, bringing together nationalist and Unionist communities in more than 5,800 co-existence projects. That investment provided the vital civic society foundations that underpinned the drive towards peace in the 1990s.”
“Over the past 25 years, the high hopes of Oslo have given way to fear, mistrust and pessimism, and that pessimism is understandable. It is more than six years since the last serious and substantive effort to restart the peace process. Ultimately, the international community can facilitate a two-state solution, but it cannot impose it. Only direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, which will inevitably involve painful compromises on both sides, can bring it about. We should not, however, see the current hiatus and barriers to a two-state solution as a cause for inactivity and passivity. Instead, we should think creatively and boldly about how we can best foster an environment in which peace negotiations and a two-state solution might resume and succeed.”
“The obstacles to a two-state solution are well known: settlement building by the Israeli Government, which threatens both the viability of the Palestinian state and, over the long term, the democratic character of the state of Israel itself; the actions of the Palestinian Authority, for example through its school curriculum, which threatened to instil hatred and violence in another generation of young people; and the refusal of terrorist groups such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah to accept Israel’s right to exist. The prospect of a two-state solution is threatened, too, by the growing belief among both the Israeli and Palestinian public that, even if desirable, it is no longer possible. Most worryingly, support for a two-state solution is weakest among Israelis and Palestinians under the age of 30.”
“I beg to move, That this House has considered UK support for an international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace. It is an honour, Mr Efford, to serve under your chairmanship. I am pleased to have secured this debate as a recently appointed chair of Labour Friends of Israel and a member of Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East. During this very challenging period that we are living through, this debate today could not be more timely. The impending departure of the Trump Administration in January will provide an opportunity to reassert international consensus in favour of a two-state solution to the tragic conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Britain should seize that opportunity by supporting the establishment of an international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace.”
“Nobody believes that co-existence by itself is going to create that lasting peace settlement, but it is absolutely necessary to ensure that it will last. It is up to politicians and Governments to have the will to make difficult compromises and reach an agreement. Ultimately, it is the people who will sustain that peace, who will benefit and who will reap the rewards of peace, security and co-existence. I look forward to the Minister conveying the specific asks that have been made: that we put ourselves forward for a seat on the international fund that the US is leading, that we look at how we can contribute to it and be pioneers in leading this effort, and that we do so without delay. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered UK support for an international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace.”
“I thank the Minister for that response. This debate is incredibly important and gives me great hope. The power of the possibility that this international fund holds is in the fact that it is not a party political issue. All parties have spoken in favour of working together for our shared ambition to build peace where currently that is a big challenge. People-to-people work is not a fluffy afterthought. The civil society dimension of peacebuilding is about very practical politics. It is about how to garner public support for any future agreement and ensure that that agreement—the speech by the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) was very powerful in this respect—can weather the challenges that it will inevitably face in the medium to long term. Peacebuilding is essential for peacemaking.”
“I thank the hon. Gentleman for mentioning the eastern leg of the integrated rail plan. We have great representation in the room from the eastern leg. It stretches 500 miles from London to Aberdeen and Inverness, but in its current state it is sadly holding back the communities that it is intended to serve. That is why local authorities have come together to launch their Invest East Coast Rail campaign this Thursday. Will the hon. Gentleman join me in calling on the Minister to bring the Government’s support for that campaign to the fore and to ensure that the east coast main line is absolutely key in their thinking about investing in future rail for this country?”
“Without support, we will be poorer financially and in spirit, and the Government should not want that to happen, as much as I do not want to see it.”
“I want the Government to look at building flexibility into the local restrictions support grant. The night-time economy is in crisis, and we know that not every business will survive, but local authorities have the local knowledge and intelligence to know where that money can be best spent. The petition is called “Let Us Dance”. People do not expect to go back to dancing in nightclubs straight away, but they want them still to be standing when they can go to celebrate when the pandemic is over. If we allow our night-time economy to fail, we will lose a part of our character and history that has grown organically over time. It cannot just be replaced. We should not leave a vacuum that will be filled with who knows what sort of business.”
“Those are not dispensable businesses that we can allow to wither and die during the pandemic. We cannot assume that we will resume normal business, that they will be replaced with shiny new venues and that all will be well. If those businesses do not survive the pandemic, we will be losing our city’s character, part of our history, the thing that makes Newcastle what it is. The way to stop that is to give the support now. The Government’s decision to include clubs in the restrictions support grant is a belated acknowledgement that they have not been able to generate any income for eight months. However, Ministers know that £3,000 a month—for those that get the most—will not be enough to cover the backdated losses that many of the places have faced.”
“As hon. Members know, Newcastle has a globally renowned night-time economy. Our night life is a big attraction for locals, tourists and prospective students. Newcastle’s pubs and clubs are concentrated into clusters that have developed their own character, from the upmarket Quayside, through the down-to-earth Ouseburn and the famous Bigg Market, to the pink triangle. There is something for everyone, and a warm welcome usually awaits. I am proud that Newcastle also hosts some iconic venues, such as World Headquarters, a pioneering and progressive underground club where I have to admit I spent much of my 20s. It has a long and rich history going back decades in Newcastle. Venues like that are the fabric of Newcastle and the north-east, helping to make us into the thriving, multicultural and cohesive community that we are proud to be.”
“The right hon. Lady is making a compelling and powerful speech that resonates very much with the representations I have had from constituents. Does she agree that one of the big challenges that people face is the limbo that they have been left in—not able to plan for the wedding they dreamed of, or even one they could compromise on, and not knowing whether the insurance will cover the loss of everything that they have spent? That is why the Government need to give that certainty about what is happening to end the limbo for such couples.”
“A huge number of couples have actually not booked their weddings and they are not waiting, ready to go, because they have lost their date. They had a date in July, but they have now been offered a date in January, probably at the same price and with no discount. This is really heart-breaking for many of these couples. I totally recognise the optimism of the Minister, but he should recognise the sheer heartache that many couples are living with today.”
“I am aware of situations where employees are very afraid of losing their job if they have to self-isolate. They are not necessarily able to access any sick pay or Government support. What messaging are the Government putting out to employers to make sure that they understand their obligations towards their employees? What can an employee do where they fear that they will lose their job if they do the right thing and self-isolate?”
“The Minister will recognise that there is a difficult balance to strike between encouraging compliance and discouraging engagement with the system —not being tested and not reporting symptoms in order to avoid the consequences of not being able to self-isolate. Have the Government analysed the potentially worrying consequence that increasing the penalties may disincentivise doing the right thing from a health perspective?”
“I do not want to add to the confusion, but the Government really need to do better if they are to get the best results from any measures put in place.”
“On the point about clarity, everybody appreciates that this is an unprecedented situation that is difficult to manage, but the Government have to do better at communicating the decisions and changes that affect people’s everyday lives, because that is the only way that people will know how to best combat this virus. For example, three different sets of regulations for the north-east have been announced to us in three weeks. I have such admiration for the people of the north-east; they are erring on the side of caution and doing what they think is best. However, it is difficult to understand exactly what the requirements are, because we have the national rule of six, then we had local restrictions and now we have the tiers.”
“Something occurred to me as my hon. Friend was speaking: it is the way that we are legislating and regulating these activities that results in such confusion. If we follow the normal procedure of announcing an intention and Parliament debating it, we will get that automatic feedback on how the regulations will work in practice, problems will be ironed out and it will be legislated for, and the country will have been briefed directly through Parliament, rather than through the papers. I think that would run much better. If the Government go back to the normal way of doing parliamentary democracy, it might help our response to the pandemic.”
“There is another aspect. The economy faces a challenging period ahead, and businesses need to make savings. There will be employers who will not necessarily cite self-isolation as the reason why they are dismissing or penalising an employee. Although we cannot legislate for everything that an employer might decide to do, the Government could do a lot more to send the clear message that such behaviour is not acceptable and will be frowned on. It is socially unacceptable for any employer or business to treat any employee detrimentally for doing the right thing in relation to coronavirus. The Government could do much more to set a very clear tone on that front.”
“I cannot fail to take this opportunity to plead with the Government to heed what is being said about economic support for the areas in the north most affected by the virus. Giving that economic support is not only the right thing to do, morally, for those communities; it is the right thing to do to defeat the virus.”
“There are huge concerns that the restrictions being put in place across large swathes of the country are not backed up with the economic support necessary to ensure that people can comply with them. That is not a party political argument; the reality is that people will not comply if they unable to do so. Many parts of the country are facing a double whammy of local lockdowns and the withdrawal of financial support. The people who were more economically vulnerable going into this crisis are the ones most affected by it, by the restrictions that are coming into place, and by the withdrawal of the full furlough scheme, which is closing at the end of this month. When it comes to the impact of the withdrawal of that economic support, we ain’t seen nothing yet.”
“It is early days, and this will come down to the ability of local people to comply with measures. We are all doing everything we can to reiterate the messages on how that can be achieved. There does appear to be a positive response to the measures put in place. It is worth noting that there is generally a two to three week-lag in the response to restrictions; it does not happen overnight. We are seeing now the response to the restrictions that the local authorities asked for. The lesson to be learned is that there should be a collaborative approach in which local authorities work closely with communities. If we get to the point of imposing measures and use many of the powers in the regulations, we are losing the battle against the virus—and the argument. We are certainly losing local communities and their ability to respond.”
“They have not only worked tirelessly to deal with the virus, but done everything they can to mitigate its impact on people in Newcastle and across the north-east. Newcastle’s response to the university outbreak was a clear example of how the knowledge, intelligence and capacity of local public health departments can really made a difference. If there had been a data lag, and if data had been sent to students’ home addresses, rather than being recorded locally, we would be in a different position, but we have connections and networks, and the knowledge, insight and ability to reach into local communities and understand what is really underneath the data. Newcastle and the north-east have been making headlines for the worrying rising infection figures, but some measures appear to be working.”
“Yes, the Minister has a huge number of questions to answer, and I would like to hear the responses, because I share many of the concerns raised. The Minister will have discerned the flavour of my concerns about this legislation. We are not opposing it, but it is right that it be properly scrutinised. It is right also to acknowledge the other side of these restrictions, measures and enforcement powers that are being put in place, namely the ability of people to comply with what is being asked of them in this pandemic. I agree with the points made by the right hon. Member for Forest of Dean (Mr Harper) about local directors of public health, and I want to put on record my gratitude and admiration for the local director of public health in Newcastle, and also for the city council.”
“My final argument is that when we get things right on a cross-party basis and a governmental and business collaboration basis, a strong workers’ voice is always in there too. If we really want to make the Jet Zero Council work, we should have workers’ representation and the voice of workers, working with business and Government to maximise its potential.”
“An airport scrappage scheme has also been promoted as reducing emissions and creating the quieter aviation that many people want to see in the future. In addressing one of the immediate challenges we face, I return to the comments of the Work and Pensions Secretary. If we encourage everybody currently in the aviation sector to retrain as carers or teachers, we will lose the vital skills base that we need to build sustainable aviation, fuels and aircraft of the future. The current approach in the job support scheme, which provides only 67% of wages where those jobs cannot be undertaken, does not go far enough. Greater investment in retaining those skills and supporting those jobs now, as well as the jobs we will need in the future, is vital.”