Finance (No. 2) Bill

Jane Hunt Excerpts

Committee stage & Committee of the Whole House (Day 1)
Monday 19th April 2021 Commons Chamber

[Jane Hunt (Loughborough) (Con)]

I rise to speak in favour of the Bill.

Freeports will play an important role in the Government’s levelling-up agenda, bringing much needed opportunities for economic growth and social mobility to areas that have historically seen low levels of investment and less opportunity. That is why, over the past year, I and my fellow east midlands MPs from both sides of the House have worked hard, alongside our local enterprise partnerships, businesses, local authorities and educational establishments for the east midlands, to become a freeport site. I was delighted by the announcement at the Budget that East Midlands airport will be one of eight ambitious new sites across the UK. This decision will ensure that the east midlands cements itself as a hothouse for innovation and becomes a dynamic environment for innovators, businesses and regulators to generate and test new ideas and technologies.

Crucially, the freeports will be vital to the development and expansion of local businesses that are the driving force of the east midlands economy, and of the green agenda for the nation. The east midlands, being part of the midlands engine, is also the heartland of the UK’s manufacturing sector, and the freeport will help to transform this manufacturing base through new technologies, creating a whole new industrial sector locally. The extended supply chain across the country will also fully benefit from this through products and services being fed into the business base at the freeport. The impact of this decision will not only be seen in the basic mechanics of what a freeport does to act as a customs hub for imports and exports; it will also create a highly skilled ecosystem, becoming a magnet for inward investment and business expansion, and acting as a springboard for opportunity throughout the region, creating an estimated 60,000 new skilled jobs. As such, new businesses will be attracted to Loughborough and its surrounding towns, seeking to reap the benefits of being situated close to a freeport. Indeed, interest has already been expressed by several organisations in taking advantage of the benefits a freeport would bring, either by moving to the area or expanding locally.

Loughborough is already home to a flourishing life sciences sector. We have the education powerhouses of Loughborough College with its new T-level centre and thriving apprenticeship scheme, as well as Loughborough University with its degree and above level skills that support business start-up and expansion, often through research and subsequent development of spin-off businesses. We have the physical infrastructure required for incoming businesses at Loughborough University’s science and enterprise park and Charnwood campus, and the educational expertise required to provide both a skilled local workforce ready to take up the new employment opportunities created by the freeport and the research base to drive innovation.

This is about jobs and livelihoods. It is not a reaction to covid. Freeports were in our manifesto, and I fully support the idea.