Priti Patel

It is a pleasure to speak in this debate, and to listen to a range of views, but I genuinely think that Government Members should begin with an apology to employers, for a number of reasons. First of all, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury insulted them all a few weekends ago, basically saying that employers are not working people. It was a flat insult to the millions upon millions of people in family-run businesses, probably just like the parents of the hon. Member for Loughborough (Dr Sandher), who just gave a lecture on his views about employment and employability. Fundamentally, small and medium-sized enterprises—hard-working family-run businesses—have always been the backbone of Britain and the British economy. I have a lot of time for the Minister. He is a great survivor, and he deserves some kind of accolade for his long-standing defence of his Government’s tax-grabbing, job-destroying policies, and even for his references to fiscal discipline—we can talk about that—but the Government need to wake up to the adverse impact of their economic policies for employment. We see devastating impacts on small businesses across the country and their ability to function. They are working hard and putting in long hours just to keep the lights on and manage their cash flow. The Government need to demonstrate some humility and acknowledge that right now.