Martin McCluskey MP on Labour's priorities for the economy

Without a doubt, the new Labour Government has been left with one of the worst economic inheritances of any Government since the Second World War. But there is still a lot of good that we can do, and I have been clear that that the choices we make at this budget have to be Labour choices that target support to working people across our country, and to the public services we all rely on.

These are points I made on Tuesday when I spoke in a debate on the Scottish economy. For 14 years the our economy has been held back by the Tories, who have refused to invest in our economy, and by the SNP, who have mismanaged the Scottish public finances.

Because of these choices, we have had low economic growth, falling living standards and the hollowing out of our country’s public services, including the NHS. The Labour Government’s plans are focussed on increasing growth and making sure that life gets better for working people.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves will deliver her Budget on October 30. In our area, that means ensuring that opportunities for investment come our way and aren’t just focused on particular parts of the country. The Chancellor has been clear that in everything we do, opportunity has to be spread to every area to make sure that we all benefit from growth over the coming years.

Our action has already begun. We have established the UK industrial Strategy council which will bring together the expertise of businesses, academics, and trade unions to help drive economic growth in all parts of our country.

We’ve established GB Energy, which will turbo charge investment in our energy sector across Scotland. And the National Wealth Fund will mean investment in projects across our country.

These actions are important for jobs and growth, but it’s also essential if we’re going to have a well funded NHS and public services in the years to come. 

Investment summit

Another major part of this work is making sure that businesses invest in the UK. This week’s Investment Summit did just that.

The record breaking £63 billion of investment secured as part of the international investment Summit is is more than double the amount committed at the last government’s summit and is set to create nearly 38,000 jobs across the UK.

£63 million in investment was secured as part of the summit. (Image: PA) Among the investments this week was the doubling of Scottish Power’s commitment to the UK and a £2.5 billion investment in Scotland by green energy company Greenvolt. Both will create jobs across our country.

I’ll continue discussions with these companies, and others, about how we get our fair share of investment in our area.

Hereditary Peers Bill

This week, I supported the Government’s action to remove Hereditary Peers from the House of Lords. It is completely indefensible that places are still reserved in Parliament for members of certain families, and it is well beyond time for this to be abolished.

The Bill MPs debated on Tuesday will remove the remaining 92 hereditary peers from the House of Lords.

The UK is only of only two countries in the world that still have the hereditary element in their Parliament. Despite the straightforward arguments to remove the hereditary peers, it shocked me that the SNP MPs did not vote for this change.

This immediate reform to the House of Lords is just the first step in Labour’s plans. In our manifesto we committed to replacing the House of Lords with an alternative second chamber that is more representative of our nations and regions.

Mind Mosaic

On Friday, I popped in to visit Mind Mosaic in Greenock who provide therapy and counselling services for people in our area.

Mind Mosaic offers services to people in Inverclyde and beyond, including specialist therapy for survivors of historic and singular trauma. (Image: George Munro) As the Tele has recently highlighted, the demand for mental health services in Inverclyde (and across Scotland) is continuing to increase. It’s essential we have well funded NHS and third sector services that can meet this demand, so that people can get the support they need when they need it.