Liz Truss urges PM to start investing more in housing to win over young Labour voters

LIZ TRUSS will today urge the Tories to invest a fortune in super-speed internet and housing in a land grab for “Generation Z”.

In a battle cry, the Treasury Chief Secretary will insist Britain’s 18 to 24 year-olds are not all “sandal wearing Corbynistas”.

And she will use a speech in Leeds to claim the Conservatives should forget trying to match “Labour bribes” such as free bus passes and instead focus on giving today’s youngsters the “tools to succeed”.

The number of young entrepreneurs has nearly doubled since 2015 and entrepreneurial activity among 18- 24 year-olds is much higher than France in Germany. And Ms Truss will claim Labour’s own pollsters are worried that young voters in towns and cities are the “least loyal” to Mr Corbyn.

The Cabinet Minister will say: “Young people are going off Jeremy Corbyn even faster than his own MPs are. This is the most self-starting, business minded generation ever, and all Corbyn offers is high taxes and more state control.

“Conservatives have cut taxes and made it easier to start a business. It’s Conservatives not Labour that will help young people fulfil their ambition and turbocharge the economy as we leave the EU.”

The intervention comes just weeks after the Treasury’s secretary hinted she believed HS2 should be scrapped so billions could be invested elsewhere.

She has told allies Britain needs to spend much more on faster web connections across all corners of Britain. So far the Government has only committed to promises 15million full fibre connections by 2025.

And Ms Truss will say the Government has to be far more radical in shaking up planning rules in housing so “young people have the chance to live near the best jobs.

"The state is not always the answer to modern problems – and it’s precisely the opposite of what the new generation want.”

Some 60 per cent of 18 to 24 year-olds voted for Jeremy Corbyn in the 2017 Election. A surge in turnout among the younger generation - the so-called ‘Youthquake’ - was cited as the reason for Labour’s strong showing in last year’s General Election.

Labour’s share of the youth vote did increase, but its popularity also went up among all ages except for the over 70s.

These young people are the future of Britain, and we have to ensure Brexit works for them.

Liz Truss, MP for South West Norfolk

I’m in Leeds today to talk to young people about the future of the UK beyond Brexit. Because after March, the people with the most to gain are Britain’s under-20s. This is the breakthrough generation – and I want to listen to them, writes Liz Truss.

This generation – the first to have grown up on the internet, more connected and more enterprising than any that came before – are best equipped to enjoy the freedom that comes with leaving the EU. As we bring power back from Brussels to the streets of Britain, they are raring to go.

There is a lot of latent potential to tap in to: the latest data shows that the UK now has 85% more 18-24 year old entrepreneurs than in 2015. That’s because they have more tools to succeed than ever – like the internet and smartphones. Seeing their heroes on YouTube rack up more viewers than primetime TV, or an app developed by a teenager change an entire industry, has given Gen Z the bug for success – and they’re only just getting started.

Recently I met a group of young entrepreneurs under 20 years old. Their energy was infectious, and they had two tips for us in government: make the rules simpler, and break down barriers for under-18s to set up enterprises.

We now have an army of high achievers brimming with ambition, and with the drive to shape their own futures. We’re told by Labour that they’re all sandal-wearing Corbynistas, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.

Research shows the young are more interested in making money than older generations and are less likely to support higher taxes. And it’s Conservatives, not the red-flag-waving Marxists, that are helping them succeed. Barriers to entry into business have never been lower thanks to our reforms and tax cuts, meaning anyone with a bright idea can start an empire from their bedroom.

We will leave the European Union in March, and step out into a new world with confidence and optimism.

Liz Truss, MP for South West Norfolk

This is also the first generation benefitting from our school reforms, with tougher exams preparing students for the dynamic modern economy. Like Brampton Manor Academy – the state school in East London that recently had 41 children accepted to Oxbridge. Far from snowflakes, we’re raising a generation who refuse to be put in their place and who are shaking things up.

These young people are the future of Britain, and we have to ensure Brexit works for them. Too often in this country our instinct is to be too defensive, sacrificing opportunities to preserve what we have. The danger is that it leads to state subsidies and regulation propping up industries and preventing new, fresh ideas from taking off. We must not fall into that trap.

An obvious example is housing, where we have reviewed planning rules and provided additional infrastructure funding so that more young people have the chance to live near the best jobs. And we should turn up the heat of competition, so that new building companies can take on the big corporations who stand in the way of change.

We need to keep an eye on regulation. We need to ensure standards, while allowing individuals and businesses to be independent, embrace risk and reward, and enjoy all the benefits that come with it.

And we should solve our modern challenges – like fibre connectivity– with more competition and new firms delivering cheaper, better ways forward, not politicians taking control and leaving no choice when things go wrong.

This is exactly the opposite of what Labour are offering. They areanimated by one core belief: that the state knows best and should control more of our lives. If only Jeremy Corbyn were put in charge of trains, water or the internet – goes the argument – we’d all be living in utopia.

The state is not always the answer to our modern problems – and it’s precisely the opposite of what the new generation want. They want to be free, not shackled by stifling regulation which is good at keeping order, but not so good at delivering a dynamic and exciting economy.

So we can appeal by expanding opportunities, taking on vested interests and showing we don’t want to ban any of the good bits of modern life. By doing so, not only will we generate the growth so vital for rising wages and living standards, but also convince a new generation that Conservative values are theirs.

With the Prime Minister’s approach to Brexit, this is the path we are on, and I would encourage all my colleagues in parliament to back her in securing a deal so we honour the vote of the British people and leave the EU in a way which benefits every part of our country.

We will leave the European Union in March, and step out into a new world with confidence and optimism, and a new generation of entrepreneurs driving Britain to keep defying the predictions. Conservatives should be confident that the future is ours, if we choose to embrace it.

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