Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps her Department is taking to increase Foreign Direct Investment into (a) Bournemouth East constituency and (b) England.

The Department for International Trade’s (DIT’s) regional teams engage with Metro Mayors, local enterprise partnerships (LEPs), local authorities, and our overseas network to promote Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in England, supporting 925 single site projects and creating 28,012 new jobs in 2020-21.

The Department leads several activities promoting FDI across the UK through mechanisms such as the Investment Atlas, our High Potential Opportunities (HPO) Programme and GREAT global trade campaign.

DIT are showcasing the Sustainable Aquaculture HPO won by Dorset LEP to international investors. Our Southern England investment team promote further investment capability in the area through supporting on projects such as the Dorset Innovation Park and BattleLab.