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Welsh Affairs

I am grateful for that intervention. I do not want to be partisan in this debate because I am a fan of Wales. I have just expressed that. However, we should be realistic. The global pressures recognised even by the hon. Gentleman's Prime Minister have meant that a million manufacturing jobs throughout the United Kingdom have been lost since 1997. To identify that is to put ourselves in a position to create, as a nation, a new employment strategy. It is a matter not of being critical, but of critical appreciation. Manufacturing in Wales, as no doubt in the hon. Gentleman's constituency, is very much linked to the aerospace industry, and that is why I hope that the Airbus project, which is experiencing many delays at the moment, will move forward. It is critical not only for the hon. Gentleman's constituency, but for the west midlands and Shropshire, where many small and medium-sized businesses rely heavily on Airbus and other manufacturing industries supplying the airline industry.