I have to say that I did not agree with much that the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr Wright), said, but I do agree that it has been a good debate, with many reasoned contributions from Members on both sides of the House, which I very much welcome. I will try to address as many of the points made as I can. There will obviously be further opportunities at subsequent stages to discuss detailed points.
Contrary to what the Opposition have argued, the Bill contains important measures that will encourage long-term growth. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State explained in opening the debate, part of the Government’s wider strategy is to promote growth, support business and create jobs. The Government inherited a wholly unbalanced economy based very much on consumer debt and a housing bubble. It created six new regulations every working day. Those are not the actions of a business-friendly Government.
I shall deal first with the green investment bank. I am glad that Members support its creation. As my right hon. Friend made clear in his opening speech, the bank’s expertise will break new ground in the financing of green infrastructure projects, while demonstrating to the market that such investments can deliver commercial returns. The Government have made good progress in building the bank, so that it can make investments as soon as state aid approval is received. The establishment of the bank is testimony to the leadership of this Government in rebalancing the economy and putting the green agenda at the heart of that project.
The shadow Secretary of State and the hon. Members for West Bromwich West (Mr Bailey), for Stoke-on-Trent North (Joan Walley), and for Glasgow North East (Mr Bain) raised concerns about the funding, and the
borrowing powers, of the bank. The Government have committed to the bank having £3 billion of funding up to 2015. The bank will have borrowing powers thereafter, subject to public sector debt falling—an entirely reasonable proposition. That deferred ability to borrow from 2015 will not affect the success of the green investment bank, as it first needs to focus on consolidating its expertise and developing a credible track record.
UK Green Investments has already made investments in waste infrastructure projects, and is considering major investments in priority sectors such as offshore wind. Private sector investors have responded very positively, and it is already clear that the bank will make a major contribution to the ability and willingness to invest in the green economy.
I turn now to the measures aimed at reforming the employment tribunal system. I welcome the acknowledgement by the hon. Member for Streatham (Mr Umunna) on a previous occasion that improvements can be made to the way in which the system operates, but the shadow Secretary of State today seems set against any reform and fails to recognise that other countries, including a social democrat Government in Germany, have made reforms to make their labour markets more flexible. We cannot afford to be complacent. Labour in government recognised the value of a relatively flexible labour market. Our labour market already performs well, but if we want to remain competitive it is imperative that we are aware of what other countries are doing.