Business secretary Lord Mandelson is rumoured to be involved in an eleventh-hour re-write of this Wednesday’s Queen’s Speech, raising hopes that it will contain more economy-boosting measures.

The facts:

The Queen’s Speech – delivered by the Queen, written by the government – is an annual address outlining the government’s legislative priorities for the following parliamentary session.

This year’s speech will contain measures to protect bank customers, curb binge-drinking and was set to unveil a host of welfare reforms, a clampdown on cigarette smokers and new protections for ancient monuments.

But with concern growing over the cool reception given to last week’s pre-Budget report, speculation is rife that the Labour government will remove some of these measures to allow ministers to focus on fighting the downturn.

Some commentators suggest that the old plans, announced in a draft during the summer, will be replaced with further measures to boost small businesses and low-income families.

Mandelson is said to be reviewing the document to make it ‘recession-proof’ and will strip out any items that would weigh down the economic recovery. It will be Gordon Brown’s last full parliamentary session before the next general election, which will be fought over the economy.

They said:

Speaking yesterday, chancellor Alistair Darling confirmed that the Queen’s Speech would build on the pre-Budget report: "You'd be very foolish indeed to say, 'Well, that's the job done'," he said. "This is something that needs constant attention."

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Conservative Party told the Independent Newspaper: "It's no wonder they are trimming back the Queen's Speech. They have run out of ideas and the only good ones they have got are Tory ideas."

We say:

A recent survey showed that only six per cent of people thought the VAT reduction outlined in the pre-Budget report would have a positive impact on the economy. With figures like that, the government has no choice but to do more.

A good start would be to trim the Queen’s Speech of all measures that would place additional pressure on employers, and obviously more small business-boosting measures would be very welcome.

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By News Desk  on   Dec 01,2008

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Keywords

Queen's speech    pre-Budget report    Mandelson    Darling    Brown   

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