UK Government Minister for Scotland today (Thursday 18 March) visited a leading Scottish
satellites manufacturer to highlight the exciting new
opportunities in Scotland’s growing space sector.
His tour of facilities at AAC Clyde Space in Glasgow comes after
Tuesday’s publication of the Integrated Review of
Defence, Security and Foreign Policy(the IR), which defines
the UK Government’s ambition for national security and foreign
policy over the next decade.
Investment in space forms an integral part of the plan as the
sector in Scotland aims to grow in value to £4billion by 2030.
Minister Stewart said:
Technologies produced in Scotland are at the cutting edge of
science in the space sector. Space firms headquartered in
Scotland bring in £254m and about 20 per cent of those working
on British space projects do so in Scotland, employed by 133
organisations.
The UK Government is committed to increasing spending on
defence, which will lead to investment and creation of jobs in
the Scottish hi-tech industries for years to come.
The UK’s first vertical spaceports will be located in the
Highlands and Islands – part of a £31.5m UK Government investment
- with vertical rocket and satellite launches planned from as
early as next year.
While in Glasgow, Minister Stewart also visited Thales Optronics,
defence industry manufacturers, who this year secured a 10-year
£180m contract to provide armoured vehicle Remote Weapons
Stations, securing 700 jobs and supporting 30 apprenticeships.
Minister Stewart met Samir Khan-Young, a graduate apprentice who
recently won Scottish Apprentice of the Year.
Minister Stewart added:
Meeting Samir and seeing first-hand the company’s on-site
apprentice school underlines how prioritising training within
the sector is boosting Scotland’s skilled workforce.
Minister Stewart also toured the facilities at Glasgow’s Scottish
Events Campus, which will be a key venue for the COP26 UN Climate
Change Conference later this year, and discussed with SEC chief
executive Peter Duthie the UK Government’s commitment to
supporting the post-Covid recovery of the events industry.
While on site at the SEC, Minister Stewart also visited the
Covid-19 vaccination centre at the Louisa Jordan hospital.
