Department for Business, Innovation and Skills — remedy its deficiency — rejected — 2 Feb 2011 at 15:47

The majority of MPs voted against action to remedy the deficiencies in the Business, Innovation and Skills Department.

The rejected motion read:^[1]

• This House
• notes that the Business Secretary in June 2010 called the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) the department of growth;
• believes that the overriding priority is growth and jobs;
• expresses deep concern that after nine months BIS has failed to deliver this promise on growth, that the Growth White Paper is still not published, that the dismantling of regional development agencies is 'chaotic', that local enterprise partnerships lack powers and resources, and that regional development funding is slashed and grants for business investment abolished, causing oversubscription to the Regional Growth Fund;
• regrets the refusal of the Sheffield Forgemasters loan;
• notes with concern that responsibility for the digital economy has been transferred to another department without consultation with business or rationale, that there has been no progress in securing lending to small businesses, while bank taxes have been cut, and that BIS has failed to persuade departments not to change planning policies and public services which damage jobs and growth;
• further notes the sharp reductions in adult training, that there is no longer a 10-year science funding strategy, and that BIS is prioritising unfair and damaging reforms to universities instead of enabling them to support growth;
• notes the lack of strategy or leadership for key sectors vital to rebalancing the economy;
• shares the CBI Director General's concern that the Government has no plan for growth and that BIS is a 'talking shop'; and
• calls on the Government to take decisive action to remedy the deficiencies in that Department.

Unusually, there was no amendment to this motion. It was rejected without replacing it with another motion praising the government.

• [1] John Denham, House of Commons, 2 February 2011

Debate in Parliament | Source |