Treasury – in the House of Commons at on 7 July 2020.
Sarah Owen
Labour, Luton North
What discussions he has had with the (a) Secretary of State for Transport and (b) Home Secretary on providing financial support to protect jobs in the aviation industry.
Steve Barclay
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Treasury Ministers meet the Secretary of State for Transport and the Home Secretary on a regular basis to discuss a variety of important issues, including the aviation industry.
Sarah Owen
Labour, Luton North
I have asked Ministers multiple times why it is that we have not yet seen a specific package of support for the aviation industry, and I have received general answers about general measures that are clearly not working, with easyJet already consulting on 4,500 job losses. Thousands of jobs in Luton and its council are reliant on income from Luton airport. If the Governments of France and Germany are protecting their aviation workers, why are this Government not doing the same?
Steve Barclay
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury
We continue to work closely with the sector and are willing to consider the situation of individual firms, providing that all other Government schemes have been explored and all commercial options exhausted, including raising capital from existing investors.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
