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Unemployment in the UK

It sounds a tad implausible, but I am sure that it will lead to lively debate in Scotland. Sadly, I fear that businesses in Scotland will not be immune to the present problems. The changes for which we are arguing tonight would also apply to businesses in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland—indeed, across the UK. The third element of reform that is needed is to prevent unscrupulous creditors from vetoing desirable restructurings. Once a company had proposed a restructuring plan, it would be required to submit it to the court, along with any supporting evidence. Any creditor group that disputed the plan would also be able to submit evidence, but once the court and a majority of creditors had approved the plan, it would bind all of them. Taken together, these reforms may provide the right framework to allow good companies to continue to trade during an economic downturn. I sincerely hope that the Government will adopt these proposals now. British business cannot afford to wait to the next election for a set of reforms like this. We face tough challenges today and I hope that the Government will accept the reforms in a good spirit and implement them as soon as possible.