The UK government has undertaken its highly-anticipated Industrial Strategy, ahead of an important investment summit taking place in London.
The government’s Industrial Strategy will concentrate on eight ‘growth-driving sectors’: advanced manufacturing; clean energy industries; creative industries; defence; digital and technologies; financial services; life sciences; and professional and business services.
Businesses up and down the country will be invited to react to the Industrial Strategy Green Paper, which will provide stakeholders with the chance to inform the strategy’s continued development and ensure it provides a tangible impact to people and communities right across the UK.
Reacting to news of the launch of the government’s Industrial
Strategy, Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the BCC, said: "An industrial strategy is a key plank of the UK’s growth
agenda; it is vital in securing the long-term stability that businesses need to
plan ahead and invest.
“But it must deliver on that promise, and it needs to set out
clearly how we will leverage the country’s competitive advantage. Alongside the
key growth sectors of the economy, it must also integrate each region’s
strengths into the plan.
“We need to send a message to the world that the UK is the best
place to start, grow and invest in business, and create a new 'Brand Britain
2.0' that builds on the past but looks to the future.
"This means putting green and digital innovation at the heart
of what we do, investing in infrastructure and skills, removing barriers
to investment and putting more energy and resources into exporting. The more we
sell to the world, the stronger our economy will be.
“Establishing a new supply chain taskforce, to increase resilience
is also essential. The pandemic, war in Ukraine, and the Middle East crisis,
have all highlighted the UK’s deep connectivity with global markets for energy,
medicines, communications technology and manufacturing components.”
Clare Barclay, the chief executive of Microsoft UK, has been appointed to a new role overseeing the British government’s industrial strategy.
Barclay will chair the Industrial Strategy Advisory Council, which will provide advice to the government in partnership with businesses, unions and other stakeholders.