Found: and Teesworks to help the Busi ness and Trade Committee finalise its inquiry on Investment Zones and Freeports

Found: It is fast parcels coming into the UK, freeports and cyber.

Found: A key element of that are schemes like freeports, which is a process by which we have selected some

Found: A key element of that are schemes like freeports, which is a process by which we have selected some

Found: A key element of that are schemes like freeports, which is a process by which we have selected some

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department supports foreign investment in science and technology by region.

Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Investment is at the very heart of the UK economy - it supports economic growth, creates jobs and enables improvements in productivity for new and existing firms. It is also essential for successful delivery of the Government's objective to make the UK a science and technology superpower by 2030.

The Department for Business and Trade promotes a range of investment opportunities across the science & technology sector. DBT works to attract foreign corporates to the UK, developing compelling investment propositions for DBT's international network to bring to prospective investors, this includes both sector-wide and place-based opportunities. DBT has dedicated based staff across the UK who work with the DAs/their agencies, wider DBT teams, Office for Investment and other UK government departments to deliver investment in priority areas, including science and technology. DBT teams work closely with partners to deliver events to attract investment, such as the Northern Ireland Investment Summit that was held in Belfast, September 2023.

The UK has 13 new Investment Zones which will benefit from £160 million each of Government funding to unlock foreign investment across priority sectors, especially science and technology, with a focus on driving innovation and creating quality jobs. These will be new hubs for investment and innovation across the UK and the funding spread over 10 years, will be spent on fiscal incentives and/or flexible spend to support attracting FDI. In line with the government's levelling up objectives, they are established in places with significant unmet productivity potential, where existing strengths and assets aligned to priority sectors can be leveraged to increase opportunities for local communities. Investment Zones will be established in partnership between central government, local government, research institutions and the private sector. The Investment Opportunity Fund is intended to double down on the objectives of Freeports and Investment Zones by providing a flexible, agile pot of funding that government can use to secure and respond to opportunities in these areas as they emerge.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answers of 15 March 2024 to Questions 17337 and 17338 on Freeports: Foreign Investment in UK, when his Department plans to publish the UK Freeports Programme Annual Report 2023; and if he will include the information on foreign direct investment performance (a) at the level and (b) for the dates requested in Questions 17337 and 17338.

Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Announcements will be set out in due course.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Institute for Public Policy Research report State of the North 2024: Charting the Course for a Decade of Renewal, published in March, what steps they are taking to address the widening gap in employment between London and the rest of England.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

This Government has made significant progress in creating jobs across the whole of England, and we are taking further steps to reduce regional disparities in employment. The Living Standards mission in the Levelling Up White Paper commits to increasing pay, employment and productivity in every region of the UK by 2030.

The refocussed Investment Zones programme covers eight places across the North and Midlands, providing more jobs in places and levelling up the economy. Additionally, all eight English Freeports are open for business, unlocking investment into port communities and their hinterlands and bringing jobs to these areas.

Following trailblazer deals agreed with the West Midlands and Greater Manchester in March 2023, further trailblazing provisions have been agreed with the North East, enabling local leaders to drive growth in key sectors and tailor local employment support approaches and initiatives that address needs in the area.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many freeports have been announced for each country of the United Kingdom in the past 10 years; and where they are located.

Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Information on the number of Freeports announced in the United Kingdom in the last ten years and their locations can be found at the following link.

Following discussions with stakeholders in Northern Ireland about how best to deliver the benefits associated with Freeports and Investment Zones there, the government announced at the Spring Budget that we will establish an Enhanced Investment Zone offer in Northern Ireland with £150 million in funding, able to be used flexibly across spending and tax levers.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to her Department's Freedom of Information response of 29 January to the Rt Hon Member for Islington South and Finsbury of 29 January 2024 (reference number FOI2023/08394), how many freeports were recorded as having an amount of capital expenditure resulting from verified foreign direct investment of (a) £0, (b) £1 to £500,000, (c) £500,001 to £10,000,000, (d) £10,000,001 to £100,000,000, (e) £100,000,001 to £400,000,000, (f) £400,000,001 to £640,000,000 and (g) more than £640,000,000 between 1 December 2021 and 29 February 2024.

Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)

There is an expectation that FDI performance of UK Freeports will be assessed in the upcoming annual report on the programme that DLUHC will be releasing in Summer. The data used in the FOI remain the most recent in the public domain.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to her Department's Freedom of Information response of 29 January 2024 to the Rt Hon Member for Islington South and Finsbury of 29 January (reference number FOI2023/08394), how many freeports were recorded as having a number of jobs created as a result of verified foreign direct investment of (a) zero, (b) 1 to 50, (c) 51 to 150, (d) 151 to 250, (e) 251 to 400, (f) 401 to 710 and (g) more than 710 between 1 December 2021 and 29 February 2024.

Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)

There is an expectation that FDI performance of UK Freeports will be assessed in the upcoming annual report on the programme that DLUHC will be releasing in Summer. The data used in the FOI remain the most recent in the public domain.

Found: The map is available electronically at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/maps-of-uk-freeports

Found: the publication of the EIZ prospectus for Northern Ireland, Michael Gove said:  “Investment Zones and Freeports

Found: line with the recent Government emphasis on speeding up delivery of the Freeport sites set out in the Freeports

Found: provides information resulting from Spring Budget 2024, including: film studios - business rates relief freeports

Found: Roundtable to discuss local economic growth partnerships, Investment Zones and Freeports.

Found: Opportunity Fund available over 5 years to secure specific, named private investment in Investment Zones and Freeports

Found: Green Freeports in Scotland: FOI release

Found: Local government finance circular 4/2024: Green Freeports Non-Domestic Rates relief and income retention

Found: Local government finance circular 4/2024: Green Freeports Non-Domestic Rates relief and income retention

Found: Local government finance circular 4/2024: Green Freeports Non-Domestic Rates relief and income retention

Found: AND imported goods - Wave 51UKFreeports_UseEstimated share of businesses by whether plans to use UK freeports

Found: AND imported goods - Wave 51UKFreeports_UseEstimated share of businesses by whether plans to use UK freeports