I thank the Government for keeping their part of the bargain in trying to push the Bill through the House before Dissolution.
I again pay tribute to the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), as I did in an intervention. He was very modest in what he said about his role. I understand that it was a team effort within the Government, but I must say that he was outstanding in the number of meetings he held with business organisations in my constituency, such as the manufacturing focus group and the chamber of commerce. He put across the case for devolving corporation tax very well, and all credit to him for his enthusiasm. He was also very enthusiastic about enterprise zones, as has been mentioned, and other parts of the different regions of the United Kingdom are starting to raise that whole issue.
The Chairman of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee pointed out that we debated this matter and produced a report some time ago, and I remember what one of the economists said. People say that if someone brings 20 economists into one room and tries to get them to agree, they will find it very hard. My hon. Friend the Member for East Antrim (Sammy Wilson), who is an economist, is not in the Chamber, or I would certainly get a very smart response from him.
I asked one economist at what point between one and 10—given a clean sheet—he would put corporation tax, and he was quick to say that he would put it somewhere
in the middle. We all agree that the measure is a great move for the future of Northern Ireland, but it is not a panacea or silver bullet, and we need to bring together a lot of things to make it work. The economist reckoned that other factors need to be looked at, including fast-track planning, which has been discussed, the whole planning structure, research and development, and education, which was also raised earlier. It has just been announced that we will get two new regional colleges—one in the town of Banbridge, and one in the Craigavon area—which will benefit my whole constituency. The colleges recently made a presentation about the number of courses and higher level apprenticeships that will be provided. As the hon. Member for Belfast East (Naomi Long) said, skills are vital for any organisation that comes to Northern Ireland, so there needs to be a skills base. A lot of elements therefore need to be brought together for the whole package to work.
Everyone in this debate has broadly welcomed the Bill, but it has been sensible of many of those who have spoken to put in caveats and not to make promises that we might not be able to keep in five or 10 years. The point was made that when companies decide to invest in other regions or sit down to write business plans, they do not plan for just six or 12 months, but for three, four or five years. We do not want to make rash promises, only for companies that plan to come into Northern Ireland to find, all of a sudden, that it does not work. Today we have the coalition Government, but things could change on 7 May. We might have another Government. Will they have the same principles and ideologies as this Government? It is therefore important that we do not make rash promises.
My constituency of Upper Bann is the second largest manufacturing base in the Province outside Belfast, with companies such as Moy Park, Almac and Thompson Aero Seating. It has a lot of good companies, such as bakeries and agri-food businesses. Many of those companies would benefit from the lowering of corporation tax. I declare an interest in the agri-food sector and refer to the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, because my family business would also benefit. The benefit will be felt across the constituency. At the worst economic times, unemployment in Upper Bann rose to 8.5% or 8.6%. As of last week, it was down to 5.2%. Even at the best of times, it never fell below 4% or 4.5%, so we are heading back to where we were in the good old days.
We need to encourage our young people to stay in the United Kingdom. The hon. Member for Foyle (Mark Durkan) made the point that every year we lose a campus to other countries. I still help young people on a regular basis to fill in forms and visas to go to Australia, New Zealand or China. We need to encourage young people to stay and protection needs to be put in place. We have heard about issues such as brass-plating. That needs to be definitive and there are a lot of issues that need to be teased out. That can be done as we go through the Bill over the next few weeks.
I broadly welcome the Bill. It will bring great benefits to Northern Ireland. It is important that every part of the United Kingdom and every country looks to its advantages over other countries. We have to look for the competitive edge. If this brings the competitive edge for Northern Ireland, that is good news, because we have sat alongside the Republic of Ireland, with its 12.5% rate, for many years. As was said earlier, throughout all the
difficult economic times, with the Celtic tiger losing its buzz and all the rest of it, it still held on to the corporation tax rate. Even when the European Union threatened to take it away, the Republic of Ireland stood its ground and won the day. We need to continue with this proposal. I think there are good days ahead for Northern Ireland.