YouSaid · the spoken record
Jonathan Reynolds
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On the record 2010–2026
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“Honestly, I do not think that is reasonable. I appreciate the Liberal position is almost certainly to go back into the European Union—there is consistency there—but I say again that doing so would mean, for instance, denying us the benefits of the India trade deal and services access to India, the reduction of tariffs on agriculture, whisky and cars, and the benefits of the US agreement, which has saved tens of thousands of jobs.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I understand the point that the hon. Gentleman makes. This was the question that faced the nation at the time of the referendum. If a country leaves a single market and customs union, there will of course be economic consequences, particularly when there is the free movement of people, but that is the decision the country took. Let’s look to the future, not the past. We could have this argument forever. We would have a situation where the business uncertainty created by never fundamentally coming to a settlement on Brexit would in itself become as big a problem as the impact of leaving the single market that he talks about. Of course, if we were in a customs union without being part of the EU, could a G7 economy subcontract that area of policy entirely to other countries and not have control of a key aspect of our economy?”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am getting the impression that you would like more brevity from the Front Bench, Madam Deputy Speaker, so I will just say that the skills packages will put more funding into courses, and the flexibilities required on those courses that matter, with more capital funding for technical excellence colleges, while ensuring that that is available to every part of the UK.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I very much welcome that question. The Ministry of Defence has been a partner in the defence industrial strategy, which mirrors and is closely aligned with, as one would expect, the strategic defence review and the big increase in spending under this Government.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I very much appreciate my hon. Friend’s question. She will see a whole range of tools in the place section that are available to both mayoral and non-mayoral areas, which will help to shape local economic plans. She will also see measures to attract inward investment and to strengthen its voice in all the regions, and a whole range of policies that speak directly to business. We are building on the tremendous history and expertise in her area; it will be good news across the board.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“There are parts of the skills package that allow for short courses, more flexibility and more foundational apprenticeships, which I think speaks exactly to the challenge the hon. Gentleman puts. If he writes to me on any specific issues relating to the towns fund in his constituency, I will get those answers.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thoroughly welcome my right hon. Friend’s question and thank her for all her support for our determination to make sure we have the competitive automotive sector that we all want. She is right that the changes to the ZEV mandate are part of this. They were brought forward because of the pressing urgency—I was not happy with the situation that I inherited from the Conservative party. We closely review the level of consumer demand in the sector and are always willing to work with her and the tremendous businesses in her constituency to make sure we are getting this country’s markets to where they need to be.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I want to bring together our considerable export offer, along with the export academy and the expertise that we have in markets, to make things very clear, so that a Member of Parliament like her visiting a business can simply say, “This is where you need to go. This is all the resource available, and I can raise any other issues with the Secretary of State.””
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Well, I think there is no comment I can make on that. I would say, first, that I imagine that that business has been doing very well in the last few days—anyone selling ice creams has probably seen a pretty solid demand for their products. The hon. Member makes a really good point, though; there is a lot of support for exporting, and businesses do not always know where to find it. The business growth service, which will be part of the small business plan, is an attempt by Government to bring together a single portal of information—to digitise, with a single digital login ideally, all the interactions that businesses have with the UK state.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank my hon. Friend for her question and for her championing of that sector, which is significant for her constituency. Part of the approach in the industrial strategy is to recognise eight sectors that are very important—those that have an analytical base—and focusing some attention on them, but it covers those foundational sectors as well. As she has said, other sectors would include steel, chemicals, critical minerals, composite materials, electricity networks, ports and construction. We need the foundations in place if we are to have the kind of success that we are looking at, and I look forward to continuing to work with her on that.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I almost thought the hon. Gentleman welcomed part of the strategy there. That took me a little by surprise. Yes, we are going to take decisive actions to reduce the cost of industrial energy prices. As I said earlier, there are some things I can do quicker than others—the supercharger scheme can be made more generous in the short term—but others require a longer process. I will work as hard as I can to deliver that, but I hope he recognises that the core reason why we are such an outlier is our exposure to fossil fuel prices, including gas, for both heating and electricity prices. To be frank, instead of us going down a route where we will be exposed to that in the long term, without the kind of ambition we need to make sure we have secure, clean supplies of energy in the UK, I think the hon.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome my hon. Friend’s question, which speaks directly to the challenges we are facing. As well as the action on energy bills, we will make sure there is a priority service for businesses to get the grid connections they need—one of the biggest barriers to investment—along with investment in skills. Something that I am particularly excited about is that we are going to spend £41 million to make sure that there is decent wi-fi on every mainline train service by using the latest satellite technology. If I was coming to Parliament just to announce that, I would be quite happy, if I am being honest.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Madam Deputy Speaker, my hon. Friend the Minister for Data Protection and Telecoms has just told me that it is £141 million, not £41 million, to put wi-fi on the trains. It has been quite an exciting day, but it is important that I put that on the record. Energy prices are one of the fundamental parts of the strategy. As I say, the supercharger can be put in place by the financial year 2026-27; the British industrial competitiveness scheme will have to follow a longer process, including a legislative process, so that would happen in the financial year after that. I know how important this is, but once those plans are in place, businesses will have the certainty that that is the cost that they will face, and they can make their business plans and any investment decisions based on that.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank my hon. Friend for her work on the Business and Trade Committee; I always enjoy my sessions there, as do my ministerial team. She is right that finance is a huge issue and scale-up finance is a particular challenge. We intend to use the British Business Bank, as I have said, with much greater financial capacity to work directly with fund managers focused on the scale-up part of the finance journey. I know how big a problem this is. There is a lot of capital in the world and we have got to address this particular stage, and these are real measures that seek to do that.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thoroughly agree. It is an exciting day and the challenge is long-term consistency and reliability—which, frankly, this Parliament and previous Governments have not supplied. There is a key voice from business to us that we need to address. Digital and tech skills are one of the prominent features of the skills interventions in the industrial strategy in order to do what the hon. Lady says. It is a significant funding package and a significant partnership with businesses, who are telling us they want to work with Government and with young people and that they want to reskill people. I think there is more we can do, but this is the start. I am keen to work with the hon. Lady and any colleague who sees the urgency of this work and the benefits it could bring.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am tremendously excited by the opportunity my hon. Friend outlines. There are many tools she will recognise in the strategy, including the funding for innovation and for local economic development, and particularly the new strategic sites accelerator—for the first time, land assembly, getting the grid and planning in place—so we have these opportunities for the kind of inward investment offers that we receive. My hon. Friend has a very exciting local proposition, and I am looking forward to working with her on it, but we need more of them.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“There is a lot of Green policy that, frankly, does propose that we do that, but that is not the approach that the Government are taking. We are ambitious about those sectors for the transition and this industrial strategy is key to making it happen.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank the hon. Lady for the slightly positive tone of her question. I believe that the skills challenge for the UK is about not just making sure that there are opportunities for young people, but reskilling people too. We have taken forward some interesting measures inherited from the previous Government that will allow us to do it. I would just say to the hon. Lady that when she condemns people who work in what she calls fossil fuel industries— [Interruption.] Well, perhaps “condemns” is too strong a word, but I ask her to recognise that we have sectors of our own economy that are, relative to other parts of our own economy, high-emissions industries, but on an international basis they are very competitive. It would not be appropriate to simply outsource those emissions to other parts of the world and import those products.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Yes, our officials are in close contact with all our partners in all the devolved Governments. We respect policy differences through devolution, but the kinds of things we are addressing are of interest to every part of the UK.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s support and the contribution his local area can make. In some areas, we have a lot of good things going on, but it needs to happen faster and we have to make sure that we execute the plans we have in place. That sounds like exactly the sort of challenge in this area that we should commit to.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“There are not the same policy tools around gas prices, but of course we can see that gas prices are projected to fall from the very significant level that they have been at for future financial years.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I say to my hon. Friend that I think Ceramics UK is misplaced in that criticism. Ceramics is recognised as a foundational sector: it is part of the materials foundational sector in the strategy. Its principal request is about energy prices. There are some ceramics businesses—I accept not that many—that get the supercharger and that will get the more generous rate. But fundamentally, the costs of a lot of those businesses do not match the intensity test, which the supercharger is based on—a sectoral and then an individual business test. That is exactly why the British industrial competitiveness scheme has been designed in such a way that they will benefit from it, and that will be a game-changer for them.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That is something to be very optimistic about, and I would be very confident about what this strategy means for Wales, while, of course, respecting the devolution settlement.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I absolutely recognise that, in all the initiatives we are putting forward today that apply across the UK, every area deserves its fair share of the funding. Of course, many of the policies that I and the Department are responsible for disproportionately benefit Wales. Under the clean steel fund, the money going to Port Talbot is much more than would be allocated to it by population share. That is because there are brilliant strengths in Wales that I want to support. In this strategy —whether around aerospace and Airbus, or automotive and Toyota, or the creative industries, professional and business services, or financial services—there is so much that will benefit Wales because of the brilliant strengths in Wales.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome my hon. Friend’s question; he is right that VPAG is significant to the life sciences sector plan and that the industry is looking for resolution on it. The life sciences sector plan will be formally launched by Cabinet colleagues to coincide with the anniversary of the foundation of the NHS. Talks with industry are ongoing and we are trying to find a settlement, which I believe is possible. We should all recognise the economic benefits of the sector for his constituency, which he carefully outlined.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I recognise the case that the hon. Gentleman makes. Some of the courses that we need and that are central to our economy—engineering is a good example—are more expensive to put on and need greater capacity. When I talk about a funding package, it is to deliver the business-led, needs-led courses to which he refers, and I would expect Harrogate college to feel the benefits of that.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Further education has had a difficult time over the past few years and we are starting to see the kind of investment that will make a difference. We need more business input into skills’ policy, which I think is the kind of work that my hon. Friend was talking about. I am more than happy to come up the road from Stalybridge to Rochdale one Friday, and we can have that conversation in person. There will be many bids from Greater Manchester for the capital that we are putting forward, and I look forward to looking at the bid that he mentions.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“This industrial strategy seeks to deliver more inward investment. For example, Universal is making an incredible investment in Bedfordshire, where is seeks to deliver the biggest theme park in Europe, creating 8,000 jobs in hospitality. People should recognise that there is a direct relationship between what we are doing here, what we are trying to get more of and the kind of benefits that the hon. Gentleman talks about. We have set a target of 50 million visitors by 2030, so such issues are represented in the strategy and, as I say, some of the issues that are not covered will be in the small business plan, which will come out imminently next month.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That is a great question. I remember our conversations about critical minerals, Madam Deputy Speaker. They are a key enabler and they will be even more important in the future. My hon. Friend will know that some of the National Wealth Fund’s initial investments have been into different critical minerals businesses in his region, because of the importance of that part of the UK to this strategy. We need more international co-operation on critical minerals as well, but he should rest assured that the British Business Bank and the National Wealth Fund are focused on this area because it is so important, and there will be big benefits to his area from that.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thoroughly agree with my hon. Friend. It is brilliant to see her in Parliament as she has been a trailblazer on these issues, and I recognise the case that she has put forward extremely well. I recognise that this is a core economic priority for the United Kingdom, and it is great to see her as an advocate for that on the Government Benches.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am more than happy to tell my hon. Friend. We have breakdowns for every region going to every colleague; there is so much for each part of the UK that I could not possibly do it justice from the Dispatch Box. On his point about clean energy, there is so much money coming into the UK—and more in future—that it would be crazy to turn our backs on that. This is a major economic opportunity, as well as being about a safe, reliable, clean supply of energy for the UK, which is the basis of all economic activity. We can provide that while reducing energy bills for industry, so that is exactly the kind of consistent approach that this country has needed for some time.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We all have a responsibility to work with our colleagues in the Northern Ireland Executive to ensure UK Government policy works to the maximum, and provides consistent and co-ordinated benefits. I am regularly in touch with my colleagues in Northern Ireland and regularly visit. I am planning a visit right now—I might even look up the hon. Gentleman and make a visit to his constituency to address some of these issues.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s support and kind words. There is a great deal in the strategy that will benefit every part of the UK. He knows that I take my responsibilities for Northern Ireland very seriously, particularly given the complexities of trade policy, the Windsor agreement and how that has to work for the benefit of everyone in Northern Ireland. He will know that the UK has the lowest corporation tax of any G7 country, so it is quite an ask to reduce it still further. However, I understand the genuine competitive pressures of being in business in Northern Ireland for people who are close to the border, and how they are affected by the mobility of capital and talent.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“To be frank, the preparation of the strategy has not always been easy, but it is the kind of consistent approach to policy, competition and competitiveness in the UK that is very important.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is important for colleagues to understand that the modern industrial strategy published today provides a tool through which other non-economic Government Departments can filter their own policy decisions, in a way that is consistent and to the benefit of UK business. For instance, the Home Office will publish its exemptions to the more restrictive skilled worker visa in relation to what the sectors set out in the strategy need and, for the first time, decisions will be made through that lens. My hon. Friend mentions a specific piece of work by colleagues in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on the workforce strategy, to which they are committed. I do not have a timescale for that, so I will ensure that I or colleagues write to him about it. The prize here is genuinely joined-up Government.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I will be frank with my hon. Friend’s constituents. In the past, Governments have produced documents that do not have much longevity but have a lot of analysis without necessarily having real measures behind them. That is why we have launched this strategy on energy, finance and skills, on the powers that local areas need and how those programmes will work consistently across Government. This is always about creating the conditions for the private sector to thrive in, but anyone looking at the big challenges facing UK industry will see them addressed in this document.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Derby has an incredible pedigree in engineering skills. I agree with the case that my hon. Friend has made so strongly. I have added some funding from my own Department to that from the Department for Education around engineering, because the shortages are so acute and the opportunities so great. These are great jobs, careers and lives for young people or anyone transferring into that sector, with more funding for the courses, more flexibility in the courses that can be run and more capacity in technical excellence colleges. Although it is also about availability in all parts of the country, we could not get a better pedigree than my hon. Friend has in Derby, which is a great success story for this country and for her local area.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Let us have more of that across every bit of the UK, tailored for local needs and with the right tools that those political leaders need.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is very important that we show the British people that the added investment and huge increase in defence spending from this Government will see real economic benefits for them and opportunities for their families, as well as fulfilling the core function of national security. My hon. Friend mentions devolution. We have measures in the strategy for local areas, whether or not they have mayoral leads on innovation and mayoral growth funds, many of which build on the very successful work of Andy Burnham, my Labour mayor in Greater Manchester, and Richard Parker in the west midlands, who have done brilliant things. Those are the most developed and mature mayoral areas. We can see what has worked in those places, and it really is starting to work.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I always take a close interest in success stories from the north-east of England, and what my hon. Friend outlines is incredibly exciting. The high-tech SME cluster that he talks about will benefit in many ways from each of the sector plans, whether they are in advanced manufacturing, creative industries or defence. There are provisions on access to finance for them in this strategy and the dedication of resources from the defence budget, for instance, for that sector. Those businesses are set to fly, and with this industrial strategy my hon. Friend has a real chance to build and communicate the opportunities for them over the next few years.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“More generally, the chemicals sector is recognised as a key foundational sector in this strategy. It has had a lot of pressure in recent years, and we are seeking to improve that business environment.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I think it was about a year ago when my hon. Friend and I were on the campaign trail in her constituency and visited businesses with the message that we would implement a strategy of this kind. I think that the Scottish economy, when mapped against our eight industrial strategy sectors, could be a description of Scottish success, and we should be excited about that. The ethylene cracker at Mossmorran is a very important facility. As my hon. Friend will know, high gas prices across Europe mean that all the crackers across Europe are under some degree of distress. I have been in conversations with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland about that and other crackers in Scotland that are affected by those high gas prices, and we continue that work.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thoroughly thank my hon. Friend for her question and for all her work in her role in Parliament advocating for these issues. There is a huge amount in this strategy for the sectors that she outlines. I was very proud of the work that we did with Hitachi. On cars, it is about the tariffs, the Drive 35 programme, energy costs and the ZEV mandate, and we will make any changes that we need for a competitive position. This is fundamentally about what business needs, but it is also about better-paying jobs in every part of the UK. My hon. Friend’s part of the world in particular will stand to benefit considerably from this programme.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is brilliant to hear from my hon. Friend; she has so much to be proud of in her constituency. I have visited Farnborough on several occasions, and it has a range of things that are directly represented in this strategy. I also thank her for being a huge ally on the work that we have done on access to finance for the defence sector, which has been an important message for us to send out about national security and the huge economic opportunities that rightly should come from the increase in defence spending that this Government have committed to already.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I certainly would love to visit—I am happy to commit to that. I am surprised that my hon. Friend did not claim her constituency to be the birthplace of the industrial revolution, because I think a few colleagues have gone there, and she has a claim to it as well. Whether it is funding for lower energy costs, skills in the pipeline for young people, access to finance, a regulatory environment that fosters growth or expanding Made Smarter, which is a fantastic programme that we will have more of, there is so much in this strategy that will make a difference to her area. Perhaps we will go and visit some businesses together and take that message to them.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I do not think it would. That is the approach I will always take to the ceramics sector or any other sector to ensure that we are doing the right thing, both for the climate and for British jobs and British industry.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank my hon. Friend for her question. She has already heard me outline the eligibility, and the foundational role that ceramics plays in the strategy and the support it can receive. She is also right that we have committed to the energy-intensive industries compensation scheme review that the industry wanted. We should all recognise that the ceramics sector faces more challenges with decarbonisation than some other sectors, and we have to be a supportive partner in that, particularly by recognising some of the technological limitations that currently exist. As I said in answer to a previous question, we have to look at where we are—perhaps we have higher emissions from a sector, but where is that sector internationally? Would it be in our interest to see those emissions exported abroad and emissions as a whole go up?”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My hon. Friend raises some very important and serious questions. Universities play a huge role in innovation and are a vital part of the clusters we are creating, but in themselves, they are something of which we should be incredibly proud. We have a world-class university sector, and every parliamentarian should be prouder of that. I do not have time to go into the detail that I would like, but universities are at the heart of our approach to innovation and economic success across the UK.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I recognise that there are some regulatory issues that my hon. Friend was probably asking about, particularly in relation to the lead that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs would have on extended producer responsibility and some other aspects. I am always keen to work with colleagues across Government, and I will ensure that my hon. Friend gets the answers to his questions that he needs, but he is right to say that there are many opportunities for businesses—big and small—and for his constituents in this plan.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Friend has in Worcester is exactly the kind of platform that stands to benefit greatly from the measures in the industrial strategy.”
House of Commons23 June 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗