Telford put forward to attract £105 million of foreign investment

The Telford Investment Cluster – an opportunity to create new industrial developments on more than 120 acres of land – is one of 68 UK investment projects being promoted by the Department for International Trade (DIT).

The project, one of 14 in the Midlands, would be worth about £105 million to overseas investors.

The programme, part of the Government’s modern Industrial Strategy, will seek to generate £30 billion of investment across 68 projects all over the UK, helping to promote economic growth in every region.

A key component of the plan will be the creation of three pilot High Potential Opportunities (HPO) in specific industry sectors.

One of these, in high-tech food production, will be based in Telford, an area highlighted in the announcement as having an advanced engineering cluster with crossover technologies, and availability of development-ready land with pro-active planning and inward investment support from the local authority.

The HPO pilot scheme singles out the county's Harper Adams University as a major contributor to the plan for growth, noting that the university is: “A world-leader in agri-tech research and home of the National Centre for Precision Farming – developing automation, drones and autonomous systems and with strong links to and appetite to work with business."

The pilot schemes will aim to bring growth and jobs to all parts of the UK economy by promoting those investment opportunities currently disadvantaged by a lack of information, and which might therefore be overlooked by foreign investors.

Ambitious

The Telford pilot, together with those in Doncaster on railway stock and Greater Manchester on materials for the transport sector, will be followed by other HPOs in due course.

Yesterday, Dr Fox launched the new drive to attract foreign investment into the UK at a meeting of the Board of Trade in Stirling.

He said: "This is a bold and ambitious programme, building on the UK's position as the leading destination for foreign investment in Europe through the government's Industrial Strategy, helping to build a Britain fit for the future.

"The High Potential Opportunities scheme will deliver growth where it is most needed, ensuring that the benefits of global investment are felt in every part of the country.

"And with more than £30 billion worth of new opportunities, my international economic department's overseas network is working hard to attract top investors to the UK."

Harper Adams University vice-chancellor, Dr David Llewellyn, said: "The pilot High Potential Opportunity in high-tech food production will build on the university’s extensive facilities and expertise in agri-food engineering and precision farming, as well as in other agri-food disciplines, including the novel area of agri-tech economics.

“The successful commercialisation of new technologies is expected to make a major contribution to the UK’s capacity for a vibrant agri-food system and rural economy."