Vince Cable Meets Bristolians (Bristol East Liberal Democrats)

Vince Cable Meets Bristolians

February 4, 2009 10:15 PM

Vince Cable MP: A generation has grown up expecting a predictable future and a steady improvement in living standards, full employment, rising house prices and reliable, solid banks. Within a few months the world had turned upside down with national debt reaching £300 trillion and India outsourcing call centres to Britain

Vince Cable, Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesman, and Graham Watson, Leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in the European Parliament visited Bristol on 29th January to join with private and public sector representatives and party members and share views on the City's local economy.

The debate was set against damaging news that in Bristol since December 2007 applicants for job seekers allowance had increased from 4,627 to 7,349 in 12 months, a 59% increase in a year.

Speakers also included Stephen Williams, MP, John Savage CBE, Chief Executive for GWE Business West, Nigel Costley, South West TUC, Vivienne Rayner MBE, Keep Trade Local, and Bristol City Cllrs - Cllr Barbara Janke and Cllr Steve Comer.

Christmas has seemed much as always - the rush for presents, the heaving shops, shoals of cards, family get-togethers and too much food. But there is already a thread of anxiety running through the seasonal cheer and in the next 12 months we will see a dramatic deterioration in economic conditions.

In his keynote speech, Vince Cable stated that the public mood had changed as people realised that we are in the economic equivalent of wartime. "A generation has grown up expecting a predictable future and a steady improvement in living standards, full employment, rising house prices and reliable, solid banks." he stated adding that "within a few months the world had turned upside down with national debt reaching £300 trillion and India outsourcing call centres to Britain". On house prices Vince stated that house prices will fall further to, perhaps 40 per cent below their peak and will soon begin to look cheap.

Graham Watson briefed the meeting on views emerging from the EC on the need to build a "supergrid" linking the whole Europe-Mediterranean region, using high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cables. Already in use in parts of Europe, HVDC cables can transmit solar, wind, wave, hydro- or geothermal energy from areas where these sources are abundant to the rest of the region with minimal transmission loss. According to recent studies by the German Aerospace Centre, the cost of an initial supergrid spanning the Mediterranean and reaching as far north as Germany and the UK would amount to no more than €5 per person per year over 20 years.

Vivienne Rayner briefed the meeting on the need, in the economic crisis, to keep trade local. She spoke of the special needs of small businesses reminding the audience that over the Christmas period in particular spending on the Internet soared, while South West town centres were full of 'lookers' but not 'buyers' until the very last minute. "Out of area shopping centres were producing 'Ghost Town Britain', encapsulated the pressure increasingly being felt by independent retailers here", she said.

The debated centred on local economic mitigators as:

■ Local small and medium size suppliers should be paid within 10 days by their customers.

■ One in 4 small companies still do not claim small business rate relief; the Council should encourage all of them to do this

■ The Council should encourage council tax and housing benefit take up, it should have an apprenticeship programme and a 'Rights to Warmth' Partnership - for people at risk because of cold homes supplied with rapid access to information and advice about keeping homes warm

■ A mortgage rescue scheme should be introduced to enable applicants who are already home owners, and who have got into financial difficulties to remain in their home and avoid repossession or a forced sale. The applicant could sell a share of their home to the Council or a Bristol RSL and pay a subsidised rent on the share owned.

■ The Council could work with business leaders to give small firms advice on appealing against unfair valuations.

Bristol East Liberal Democrats