With the ‘on and off’ Trump tariffs, and the fate of British Steel requiring Parliament to sit on a Saturday – only the third time since I was elected almost a decade ago – it has felt like another period of swirling instability is upon us, the likes of which we would have all hoped to have passed with the back of the pandemic. Alas, challenging times remain on both the home economic front, and in terms of conflict abroad, so it’s perhaps appropriate that in this column I’ll be reflecting on my recent Sudbury Jobs Fair, and a very moving visit to Ukraine.
Frankly, I am concerned by the state of our economy, both nationally and locally. Whilst trying to resist the temptation to stray too far into the overtly political, I cannot get over the irony of ‘emergency’ measures to keep furnaces burning for primary steel production, when two of our most important primary industries have been subject to such terrible treatment since the election: farming and North Sea oil.
Yes, the growing threats we face mean we need to think far more strategically about assets like British Steel. Nevertheless, when we import Norwegian fossil fuels from the same basin the Government refuse to drill in - for wholly ideological reasons - and our food security is threatened by existential taxes on family farms, it’s hard to accept that the Government is properly focused on making our country stronger.
There is increasing evidence that economic weakness is starting to filter through into available vacancies. Anecdotally, for my fourth Jobs Fair – held at the Sudbury Arts Centre on April 4th – I sensed both a longer queue of visitors and fewer vacancies.
That said, I’ve always remarked how our local economy tends to buck national trends and there were still plenty of jobs and opportunities on offer, including: retained fire fighters; bus driving; the Police; and technically skilled positions in the local silk industry and at Nestle Purina. In addition, there were plenty of apprenticeship opportunities too, alongside providers of support and training to help those lacking the confidence to return to the workplace. Overall, I was very pleased with both the turnout and the buzz of job-hunting that my event engendered in the heart of Sudbury. Moreover, despite the situation regarding the Bridge Project (who were previously running the Arts Centre day-to-day), their interim team still managed to put on an excellent event in what remains a top-class venue.
Though fundamentally a constituency event, the Jobs Fair is not wholly separate from my responsibilities as Shadow Defence Secretary – and I say this not just because the Royal Navy and British Army were recruiting at the event. As I’ve said in recent media interviews in my Shadow Cabinet role, as a country we are going to have face up to the big challenge of spending less on welfare and more on Defence. That means shifting more people from disability benefits into meaningful employment, and building a more resilient nation.
To that end, it was inspiring to visit a drone manufacturer in Ukraine last week, to see the way their whole society is pitching in to the war effort. When I was Minister for Defence Procurement, I was determined to build a faster and more agile system for procuring military equipment. My inspiration was a visit to a UK drone company, producing a highly effective capability that has been used on the Ukrainian battlefield. But whilst we have produced some very technologically able drones in the UK, in Ukraine it’s the scale of their production which is so impressive.
Of course, this is due to the country being at war, and that is something we would never again hope to face. The recent bombing of Sumy by Russia, killing civilians with a ballistic missile containing cluster munitions, was truly shocking. So on my visit to Kyiv, I was privileged to be able to lay flowers at the Wall of Memory, honouring those tragically lost in this senseless war.
I know that the need to ‘toughen up’ as a nation – spending more on defence; tightening welfare rules – is uncomfortable territory for many. However, to visit a nation under constant threat of bombardment is to witness first-hand the consequences of failing to deter aggression. As this week we mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp by the British Army, the lesson is the same as that in Ukraine: be strong as a nation and stand up to bullying dictators.
Published in the Suffolk Free Press.
