Overseas investors snub Shropshire
Shropshire is falling behind other parts of the region when it comes to attracting overseas investment, a new study has claimed.
The West Midlands recorded 92 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in 2015 – the largest number recorded in a decade – according to the EY 2015 Attractiveness Survey.
However, just four of those were in Shropshire, the study claims, placing the county last out of the five areas covered by the analysis, including the West Midlands, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, and Hereford & Worcester.
In the last decade, the figures claim, the county has garnered only 34 foreign direct investments out of 531 around the region.
The West Midlands – covering Birmingham and the Black Country – was inevitably the biggest winner, with 52 FDIs last year taking the total over the last 10 years to 293.
The regional figures – bolstered by continuing investment by Tata in Jaguar Land Rover's engine plant beside the M54 near Telford – marked a 46 per cent increase on 2014, but a 50 per cent fall in Shropshire. Of the four projects which enjoyed overseas backing in Shropshire in 2015, three were in Telford and one was in Minsterley.
When employment secured from FDI is considered, the West Midlands recorded a strong increase on 2014 of 57 per cent to 7,134 – the best performing UK region in employment terms and the region's strongest performance in a decade.
More than 75 per cent of those jobs were created in the manufacturing sector.
Sara Fowler, senior partner at EY in the Midlands: "It's been another exceptional year for the West Midlands with record inward investment in 2015, bringing more jobs, and contributing to the strong performance of the Midlands Engine.
"With major infrastructure schemes such as HS2 on the horizon, I'm confident that the region will continue to attract FDI and build the profile of the West Midlands as a global investment hot-spot."
