Ian Lavery (Wansbeck) (Lab) On a point of clarification at the
outset, it is important that the media and everyone else involved
recognise that the Britishvolt site is in the East Bedlington
parish of my constituency of Wansbeck, contrary to most media
reports. The rise and fall of Britishvolt and its dream to build a
gigafactory in Cambois, in Wansbeck, is an incredibly important
story not only of how the Government have once again failed people
in the north-east, but...Request free
trial
(Wansbeck) (Lab)
On a point of clarification at the outset, it is important that
the media and everyone else involved recognise that the
Britishvolt site is in the East Bedlington parish of my
constituency of Wansbeck, contrary to most media reports.
The rise and fall of Britishvolt and its dream to build a
gigafactory in Cambois, in Wansbeck, is an incredibly important
story not only of how the Government have once again failed
people in the north-east, but of how the wider lack of an
industrial strategy, in particular regarding the automotive
industry, is putting thousands of jobs at risk and making the
creation of high-quality manufacturing jobs—like the ones
promised by Britishvolt —nothing but a pipe dream.
Due to its proximity to the old Blyth power station and the local
deep sea port, the fact that it is fully plugged into the
national grid, with a potential supply of green hydroelectric
power from Norway at a competitive price, and its fantastic
transport links and planning permission, Cambois is the most
attractive and desirable site in the country, if not in Europe,
for a gigaplant—those are not my words, but those of many
industry experts.
However, the biggest asset is the people of our great region, who
once again feel terribly let down by the situation that has been
allowed to develop with Britishvolt.
(Hemsworth) (Lab)
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who is a great champion for his
constituency, working people and the north of England. Has he
seen the reports today saying that if the north of England were a
country, it would be more or less the worst in the whole OECD for
investment by the public or private sector? Have we in the north
not been let down enough, and particularly those in my hon.
Friend’s constituency, who were led up the garden path, by the
looks of it, on a promise that will now not be delivered?
My hon. Friend makes a number of important points. It is correct
to state that people in the north have been let down greatly as a
result of this Government’s policies. Many people in our
constituencies have been let down greatly, and some are even
saying they have been left behind.
(Jarrow) (Lab)
I thank my hon. Friend for bringing this debate to the House.
Cambois is in the constituency of Wansbeck, not Blyth, as some
seem to think. What we are discussing will impact not just
Northumberland and Wansbeck but the wider north-east, including
my constituents in Jarrow. Does my hon. Friend agree that if the
Government want the people of the north-east to believe that
levelling up is not just empty rhetoric, they need to deliver not
just in more affluent areas, but in places such as the
north-east, where we have seen very little—certainly in my
constituency, and I believe the same goes for my hon. Friend’s
constituency.
The reality is that the development of this Britishvolt plant
would have transformed lives and communities not just in the
south-east of Northumberland, in places such as Blyth, Wansbeck
and Bedlington, but—my hon. Friend is right—in the likes of
Jarrow and farther afield in Sunderland, North Tyneside and the
entire region. It was to be the biggest investment in our region
since Nissan in the ’70s.
(Washington and Sunderland
West) (Lab)
My hon. Friend is being very generous with his time. Does he
agree that despite the clear failure of the Government’s UK
industrial strategy, they should continue to try to attract
investors to support a battery gigafactory in his constituency by
establishing a localised supply chain across the north-east? That
would in turn support automotive giants, such as Nissan, which he
mentioned, that are already investing in electric vehicles. We
know that that is vital for EU trade and the drive toward
zero-emissions vehicles by 2030.
Thanks for that intervention. The supply chain is so, so
important. Britishvolt suggested at the time that there would be
3,000 jobs created at the site and 5,000 jobs created in the
supply chain. That would have been felt throughout the whole of
our region in the north-east and probably further afield.
Links with Nissan would be brilliant. We need to take a leaf out
of Nissan’s book in the way it has operated in the north-east for
so many years. We were hoping to see some sort of link. Nissan is
looking towards an on-site gigafactory with Envision AESC, which
is in progress as we speak.
(North Tyneside) (Lab)
Does my hon. Friend agree that the Government seem to have
forgotten and neglected the area north of Teesside? This great
part of our region, whether it is Tyneside, Northumberland or
Wearside, always seems to be forgotten. We were forgotten when it
came to a freeport, levelling up and now Britishvolt, which, as
my hon. Friend says, would have created jobs across the region
and given it a brighter future.
That is very, very well put. People in our region are very much
aware that there has been investment in Teesside. I welcome every
penny coming into the region, by the way—every single ha’penny of
investment we can get—but it has to be further afield than just
one particular pocket of the north-east region. As my hon. Friend
says, there has been a complete lack of investment in our region
and it has been left behind for decades now. That is just not
acceptable any more. This is the idea that could have transformed
and changed that for a lot of the people we proudly represent.
People were excited by the thought they actually had the
potential to get a decent job with good wages, terms and
conditions.
(Strangford) (DUP)
I commend the hon. Gentleman for bringing this issue forward. He
has been really active on this issue and he was active in the
Chamber last week during questions, so well done to him.
I am sure the hon. Gentleman will agree that the news of an
Australian company’s intention to potentially purchase
Britishvolt, which I heard about today when talking to the hon.
Member for Hemsworth (), is truly good news. Does he agree that the
Government must invest in British business, manufacturing and
engineering? I see our highly skilled aerospace workers
constantly fearful for their jobs and managers reluctant to
expand. Further, will he join me in asking the Minister for the
Government to focus—they must focus—financial investment in our
manufacturers throughout all of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland?
Yes, of course. I will come on to the nub of the questions the
hon. Gentleman raises during my speech—I have only got through
two paragraphs up till now.
The Britishvolt site has been kept alive for years. It is not
just something somebody has come up with; it is to the credit of
the former Labour-run council, which had the foresight to
recognise the site’s advantages. It insisted on maintaining the
site for industrial use to create thousands of potential jobs in
the future, a prophecy that Britishvolt promised to make a
reality. We should remember that projects on the scale
Britishvolt was proposing do not just appear from thin air. They
go through decades of decision making and planning. That was
largely done by the Labour group on Wansbeck Council, which made
the site so attractive to potential builders over decades.
Britishvolt arrived on the scene in late 2020 and was full of
promise and potential. While many of the industry professionals I
spoke to, along with others, expressed scepticism about its lack
of experience and long-term plans, it continued to exceed
expectations and gather support. I recall the chief executive
ringing me up before Christmas that year, just out of the blue.
He said, “I’m the chief executive of Britishvolt”—I had not heard
of it—“and we are bringing 8,000 jobs to your constituency.” They
were going to be well-paid, secure jobs—green industrial jobs. I
promise you, Mr Deputy Speaker, I could not believe it. It was
like all my Christmases had come at once. Since then, I have been
heavily involved, only to be devastated by the current
position.
As I say, Britishvolt arrived on the scene in late 2020. It
impressed people so much that it managed to secure a £100 million
grant from the Government’s automotive transformation fund. To
many, that seemed to legitimise the company. There were still
many people—many, many people, in fact—who doubted it, but they
were confounded by glowing reports from the then Business
Secretary, the then Chancellor and the then Prime Minister.
At the time, the then Business Secretary, the right hon. Member
for Spelthorne (), announced:
“I’m delighted to confirm we have now provided Britishvolt with a
final grant offer through the Automotive Transformation Fund. The
Blyth gigafactory will turbocharge our plans to embed a globally
competitive electric vehicle supply chain in the UK and it is
fantastic to see how the project is progressing.
The vast site will ensure Britain can fully capture the benefits
of the booming global electric vehicle market. The well-paid jobs
and growth it will generate for the North East of England will be
transformational and are exactly the reason we are investing to
make the UK the best place in the world for automotive
manufacturing.”
In an interview with national media when the grant had been
confirmed, he also claimed:
“It is absolutely what levelling up is all about. In fact, I
can’t think of a project that demonstrates levelling up better
than this one.”
The then Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Uxbridge and
South Ruislip (), claimed:
“Britishvolt’s plan to build a new gigafactory in Northumberland
is a strong testament to the skilled workers of the North East
and the UK’s place at the helm of the global green industrial
revolution.
Backed by government and private sector investment, this new
battery factory will boost the production of electric vehicles in
the UK, whilst levelling up opportunity and bringing thousands of
new highly-skilled jobs to communities in our industrial
heartlands.”
Last summer, before his departure from office, he gave me further
guarantees in this House that support for Britishvolt was in the
post and that the Government remained 100% behind the
project.
The then Chancellor, who is now the Prime Minister, also took the
opportunity to jump on the bandwagon, boasting:
“Once complete, this factory will produce enough batteries for
over 300,000 electric vehicles each year…Our #PlanForJobs is
working.”
So he claimed. At the time, everybody wanted a piece of
Britishvolt, which was hailed as the poster boy of levelling up
and as a tribute to the vision of life post Brexit held by this
new-look Conservative party.
So where did it all go wrong? What actually happened? Why are we
in this situation now? At what point did the Government go cold
on Britishvolt, which was hailed only a year ago as the jewel in
the crown of their levelling-up plans and vision for Britain? As
ever, the Government will be keen to blame the cost of soaring
energy bills and the knock-on effects of the illegal invasion of
Ukraine, but that does not add up with the story across Europe.
The website Sifted is tracking the development of 33
gigafactories across Europe, many of which are due to be up and
running imminently. Germany has plans for 12 gigafactories, while
the UK has plans for only three, one being the Cambois
gigafactory we are discussing, which is now in great peril at
best.
The underlying issue with Britishvolt is that as a start-up it
had no capital to work with, and a range of issues meant it was
not able to attract sufficient investment and meet the milestones
that would have unlocked the Government funding that was
promised—not a penny was ever received by the company, despite
the benefits explained by the Prime Minister, the former Prime
Minister and the former Business Secretary.
Mrs Hodgson
I do not want to interrupt my hon. Friend’s flow too much, as he
is making some excellent points. On the number of gigafactories
we need, he mentioned plans for three. I hope the one in his
constituency will be saved, but it looks as though we may lose
it. We actually need eight gigafactories if we are to meet the
2030 target for zero-emission vehicles. The last thing in the
world we should be doing is not saving the plant in his
constituency. The Minister shakes her head, but I do not know how
we will ever reach that target if we do not save such plants.
I will come on to that point later in my speech, but my hon.
Friend makes a very valid and strong point.
On the issue of competitive energy sources, the UK’s industrial
energy pricing is far from competitive and drives investment
away, while our green energy infrastructure is nowhere near able
to guarantee a supply of energy via the national grid. In
December 2022, the UK cost per megawatt-hour was £580, while in
Germany it was £225, in Italy £259, in France £238, and in Sweden
£206. If we are ever going to reach our targets and support the
automotive industry, that disparity must be addressed without any
further delay.
That is just a drop in the ocean of the wider strategic issues
that have been allowed to develop in the industry. We have
hundreds of thousands of workers producing parts for vehicles
that will not be required, with no clear plan on how those
workers will transition and be reskilled in a rapidly changing
industry. That is part of the wider issue of a chronic skills
shortage that needs to be addressed by having the proper training
available for our young people leaving schools and paying them a
proper living wage to do well-paid skilled jobs. We are being
rapidly overtaken by European competitors who have support from
the European Commission and the member states themselves, and we
are also being stymied by the strength of the US and, in
particular, China, which has a near dominance in the supply of
cells, cathodes and anodes, as well as the base materials for
their manufacture.
CATL in Germany has received grant and loans from the state of
€750 million, or 22.8% of the total build costs; Northvolt in
Sweden has had €505 million, or 17.1%; and in North America
General Motors has had $2.5 billion, or 36.2%, Stellantis has had
$l billion, or 35.7%, Tesla has had $1.3 billion and Ford has had
$884 million—the list is nearly endless. Compare that with
Britishvolt, which was promised just £100 million by the
Government, and guess what percentage that was of build
costs—only 2.3%. That is absolutely disgraceful. Moreover, the
£100 million was heavily caveated, to the point where the company
never had a penny of Government support. How can this country—how
can we, as a manufacturing nation—expect to be competitive while
Governments across Europe and beyond are offering real incentives
for the manufacture of batteries, far greater than those offered
by our Government? We have to pull our socks up. We have to get
on to the pitch. We have to start playing the game, for the sake
of this nation.
In the autumn, when Britishvolt was facing financial
difficulties, it asked for £30 million of the £100 million grant
that had been agreed by the Government. The company asked for
this to be released early because it had cashflow problems,
arguing that the money would help keep it afloat and attract the
private investment that it needed to reach the other milestones
set by the Government. The Government have repeatedly made the
point that they need to act responsibly with taxpayers’ money. I
agree with that, and I am sure no one disagrees with it, but it
seems to me that £30 million for a company that says the money
will allow it to stay in business and create 8,000 jobs in a
region that has been held back for so long, keeping it afloat, is
a worthwhile investment. That £30 million is a mere drop in the
ocean of the money lost so carelessly during the pandemic, which
went into the coffers of those with close ties to senior members
of the Government, but when it might be spent on benefiting
held-back towns in the north-east, it is held under very tight
wraps.
By this point, the Government’s attitude towards the company
seems to have cooled considerably since the previous January,
when they were singing its praises from every rooftop they could
find. The pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have been
harsh reminders of the need for national self-reliance,
particularly in key strategic industries. Simply assembling the
batteries in the UK is not enough; as we enter a new phase of
globalisation, we must take control of our own destiny—and of
battery manufacturing—if we want our car industry to survive. We
still do not have a single fully functioning gigafactory,
although, as was mentioned earlier, predictions suggest that we
will need anywhere between eight and 10 by 2040.
All this has real consequences at an individual human level.
Towns and villages across south-east Northumberland and in the
north-east as a whole, including my constituency, have been held
back for decades. Once thriving industrial communities, they have
had their economic and social fabric swept from under them with
nothing to replace it. More than a decade of brutal austerity has
hollowed out our public services and civic spaces and left us
battling high levels of unemployment, low pay, poverty, crime,
and addiction problems. The jobs that were promised to come with
the gigafactory had the potential to be the first step in
changing the fortunes of our region. The income from the new
well-paid local jobs would have supported thousands of families
across our communities, and might well have helped to kick-start
a new era of manufacturing in industrial work that could have
reignited the economy in the towns and villages close by.
There was a good deal of reluctant optimism about announcements
of new developments in transport and infrastructure, alongside
the announcements about the factory and the possibility of money
from the Government’s new towns fund and levelling-up fund, but
bit by bit, drip by drip, that has ebbed away. Only last week a
bid from Ashington, in my constituency, for levelling-up money to
transform the crumbling town centre was rejected, while Richmond,
in the Prime Minister’s Yorkshire constituency, received a cosy
£19 million. That is pretty offensive to people in held-back
communities.
Bedlington in my constituency got about £8 million to build new
cycling lanes, although the bid was somewhat ironically designed
with getting workers to the new Britishvolt factory in mind.
Although every penny given to Bedlington is welcome, many are
already questioning whether new cycle lanes are all that
levelling up will amount to, given how starved the town has been,
like many in my constituency, of crucial infrastructure funding
for so long. The levelling-up fund has proved itself to be
time-consuming, expensive, divisive and unable to meet the needs
of held-back towns in the north-east. The south-east has received
nearly twice as much as the north-east from the fund, and none of
this touches the sides of the cuts to local councils since 2010
and the introduction of austerity.
The best use of levelling-up money for south-east Northumberland
would have been getting behind the Britishvolt gigafactory. The
people of Northumberland and the north-east have, sadly, once
again been let down by those working far away in the halls of
Whitehall and Downing Street. Three Prime Ministers in a matter
of weeks and a merry-go-round of Ministers in different
positions, based on nothing but blind loyalty, rather than
competence and know-how, has been a disaster for any plans the
Government may have had to level up my constituency and the
region. As usual, we are the ones dealing with the consequences
of the internal political drama unfolding in the ranks of the
Conservative party.
We need long-term thinking and a proper plan for our broader
industrial sector, and we need to overcome the major obstacles
our automotive industry is up against, if we are to truly level
up, or gauge up, our communities in the north-east, not just a
few packets of money—not just the crumbs off the table. It cannot
just be that who is best at submitting a bid will get the money
and other areas that are sadly lacking will again get left
further and further behind—my hon. Friend the Member for
Hemsworth () talked about that.
This morning, the news broke in the press that Recharge
Industries, an Australian-based company, had put in an offer to
buy Britishvolt, which is very encouraging, as were other reports
in the press this morning that 12 other companies have shown an
interest. Let us hope that something can happen, because we
cannot have another false dawn. We cannot have another
Britishvolt, where we have a project of this magnitude, with the
land, the planning and everything else in place, only for the
Government to go cold and step back from assisting our
regions.
A couple of issues are really interesting. The administrator,
Ernst & Young, has a legal obligation to accept the highest
offer. It has no legal obligation to accept what might be the
best offer for the people in our communities or to say, “I will
take that offer because it is going to create tens of thousands
or hundreds of jobs.” It has an obligation to seek what is best
for the current shareholders. We have to look at that and hope
that the administrators bear in mind when making this ultimate
decision that this is not only about the shareholders, many of
whom will probably not live in our region, or even in this
country, and are looking for as much money as possible—the people
in our region count and they should not be forgotten. We have to
put as much pressure as we can on the administrators.
I am going to ask the Minister a number of quick questions. We
have to make sure that the Government step up to the plate on
this. I have explained this and I will not repeat myself, but the
Government were shouting about Britishvolt from the rooftops one
minute and then they were refusing any finances to it the next
moment—that is well documented. They said that one of the
milestones was private investment, but the company thought that
was wrong way around. Those private companies were willing to
invest on the basis that the Government would support it morally
and financially. If the company had UK Government support, that
would hold sway. The British Government basically abdicated
responsibility, and jumped off the ship like a rat. That caused
investors to be extremely unhappy, and probably put them off in
the short and the medium term.
We are where we are with Britishvolt at Cambois. Will the
Minister commit to do whatever it takes to get behind whoever
acquires the site to build a gigafactory, including offering a
proper package of financial support, in line with what other
states across Europe offer? I have explained the massive
difference in support that European countries get from their
Governments. Can the Minister outline the Government’s plans to
ensure that the site in Cambois is developed as quickly as
possible? There cannot be any more delays. We hope that the
Government will get in intense discussions to support any
successful bidder for the plant.
Would the Minister tell us why money was not forthcoming to
Britishvolt when it requested the £30 million early, which it
argues would have gone a long way to reach its milestones and to
get the gigafactory developed? Can the Minister clarify what due
diligence was done on the company when it decided to offer it a
£100-million grant in the first place? Why did the Government
eventually go cold on their support? Can the Minister clarify
what the Government are doing to reach the target of building
eight to 10 gigafactories by 2040? How do they plan to stay
competitive with other companies across Europe and globally,
given the strategic barriers that I have outlined?
I have spoken for quite some time, but the issue is critical for
Members, individuals and families in south-east Northumberland
and the wider afield constituencies of my hon. Friends the
Members for North Tyneside (), for Hemsworth and for
Washington and Sunderland West (Mrs Hodgson). We feel left
behind. We feel that the Government have not supported us,
despite the initial euphoria that this was to be the best
possible opportunity to transform our area. I say to the Minister
that, seriously, we need to get on to that playing field. We need
to support the automotive industry. That includes electrical
vehicle battery plants. We are way behind if we are to have 80 by
2040. Let’s get cracking. Let’s get the site developed in
Cambois. Let’s get the Government support to the preferred bidder
and make sure that the bidder wants a gigafactory, not something
much less, so we can transform the economy of our great
region.
Mr Deputy Speaker ( )
Mr has sought permission from the
mover of the motion and from the Minister to make a short
contribution, and I have been informed.
6.43pm
(Blyth Valley) (Con)
I thank the hon. Member for Wansbeck () for allowing me to speak briefly in his debate. I
would like to make it clear that Britishvolt is in the hon.
Gentleman’s constituency, but its regional office was in Blyth on
the other side of the river, as is JDR Cables.
Unlike the hon. Gentleman, I accept that it was right for the
Government to set milestones that had to be met in order to
receive taxpayers’ money. It is regrettable that Britishvolt
could not fulfil its business plan, which would have triggered a
staged release of public funds, but giving a business £100
million of taxpayers’ money without conditions would have been
completely indefensible, no matter how much we all want the plan
to succeed. I want it to succeed, and the hon. Gentleman wants it
to succeed, and I do hope that we can work together.
Since my election, I have been a big supporter of the project to
build a gigafactory on the Blyth estuary, and despite the
disappointing news about Britishvolt I will continue to champion
this opportunity. I welcome statements from the Government in
recent days that Ministers wish to ensure the best outcome for
the site, and I will work closely with the local authority and
potential investors to achieve this. Despite articles in the
national press this week seeking to run down our area, people in
Blyth and Blyth Valley are working hard and will make the most of
the opportunities to work in skilled roles. The Blyth area is
still a significant centre for the renewables sector, with
businesses based in Blyth, JDR Cables’ huge investment in the
area next to the Britishvolt site and the excellent work that the
offshore catapult is doing on the estuary to support the industry
with cutting-edge research and development. The north-east really
is at the cutting edge of investment and innovation and the site
still offers a massive opportunity to the right developer, as the
hon. Gentleman says. We need to work together to do this.
At the site of the old Blyth power station, there is excellent
power connectivity with the ability to hook up to the
interconnector. This would allow us to draw green renewable
energy from Norway. On the estuary, we have the only deep water
port in Northumberland. We have easy access to the A1 and the
national road networks, as well as good rail connections. Most
importantly, there is a strong and willing workforce, and the
schools, colleges and skills providers are all raring to get
people prepared for the 3,000 jobs on the shop floor that this
project will bring, along with another 5,000 jobs in the supply
chain. I will work with anyone—the Government, the council, the
hon. Gentleman and anyone who believes in what Blyth and the area
have to offer—to attract potential investors to the site and make
sure that this project goes ahead.
6.47pm
The Minister for Industry and Investment Security ( )
Allow me to begin by congratulating the hon. Member for Wansbeck
() on securing today’s debate. I know that he has been
very active in Parliament in raising the profile of this
situation, and I could hear from the passion in his speech how
concerned he is for the people in the region. I also welcome the
comments made by my hon. Friend the Member for Blyth Valley
() about working with us on this. I
welcome this opportunity to address a number of the issues
raised, and I hope we can agree that the site provides a perfect
ecosystem for a factory to be viable. I will address that
shortly.
Britishvolt entering administration is regrettable and my
thoughts are first and foremost with the company’s employees and
their families at this difficult time. The Government are
completely committed to building a sustainable future for the
automotive industry in the UK, and promoting our EV manufacturing
capability is a central pillar of that mission. I will come on to
that in a moment. We are determined to see British companies
succeed in the EV industry, and as part of our efforts we offered
significant support to Britishvolt through the automotive
transformation fund, but the Government also have a fundamental
responsibility to protect taxpayers’ money and we have to ensure
that our investments are not put at risk. I am sure that the hon.
Members’ constituents would feel even more let down if that were
to happen. The funding for Britishvolt was therefore offered on
the condition that key milestones were met. Those milestones were
agreed after lots of conversations with officials in the
Department and included private sector investment commitments. As
my hon. Friend the Member for Blyth Valley perfectly put it,
offering public money without conditions would have been
indefensible. Unfortunately, the company was unable to meet these
conditions and, as a result, no ATF funds were paid out.
The hon. Member for Wansbeck made an important point about due
diligence. Full due diligence was completed before a final grant
offer letter was awarded to Britishvolt. As a result of that
work, the funding was designed so that agreed milestones had to
be achieved for the company to draw down any funds but,
obviously, those milestones were not achieved.
Throughout the process, we always remained hopeful that
Britishvolt would find a suitable investor, and we are deeply
disappointed that that has not been possible, but I will move on
to what really matters. The hon. Gentleman spent quite a bit of
time talking about his constituency and the region, which, as my
hon. Friend the Member for Blyth Valley said, is a fantastic
place. I assure the hon. Gentleman that securing battery
production in the UK is a Government priority. We understand it
is the foundation of a successful EV industry, and we remain
committed to seeing a gigafactory developed in Blyth. Cambois is
widely regarded as one of the best locations in Europe for a
gigafactory, as it is a huge site with power connection and
planning permission. Of course, the proud manufacturing history
of Blyth Valley means it is home to the highly skilled workers
that a gigafactory would need to succeed. All the ingredients are
there. I am therefore certain the site will continue to attract
interest from developers with big ambitions, and I look forward
to working with the hon. Member for Wansbeck and my hon. Friend
the Member for Blyth Valley as any interest progresses.
We are doing all we can to ensure the best outcome for the site,
and we will work closely with Northumberland County Council to
achieve this. We are also working hard to support Britishvolt
employees and their families. Employees will be able to access a
broad range of support, including universal credit and the new
jobseeker’s allowance scheme.
Finally, we will continue to work to unlock the region’s enormous
potential. The new Northumberland railway line aims to improve
journey times and reliability when it opens to passengers. A lot
has been said about funding to the region, and we have provided
more than £20 million from the towns fund and £11 million from
the future high streets fund. The site is such a fantastic place
because there is a lot going on, and there is a lot of support to
help the community, arts and cinema, alongside the new Energy
Central campus.
This builds on Blyth’s energy success story, as it draws on its
maritime history to develop the offshore industries of the
future—my hon. Friend the Member for Blyth Valley beat me to it.
Today, Blyth is home to the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult’s
National Renewable Energy Centre, which provides open access and
independent tests and research facilities to drive the
development of transformative clean technologies. The clean
energy industry will be a critical part of Britain’s green
transition, but if we are to deliver a green transition that
works for everyone, delivering growth and jobs for all in energy
is only part of the picture.
The automotive industry is vital to the UK’s economy, and it is
at the core of communities across the country. We must ensure it
succeeds in the transition to net zero if we are to deliver not
only on our climate goals but on our ambition to level up our
country and advance its global standing. If we get it right, we
can build an industry fit for the future that delivers security,
prosperity and opportunity for places such as Blyth and Wansbeck
in the century to come. We will continue to champion the UK as
the best place in the world to build automotives as we transition
to electric vehicles.
The automotive transformation fund supports the development of an
internationally competitive electric vehicle supply chain in the
UK, and the Government continue to work through the ATF to unlock
private investment for gigafactories, battery materials, supply
chains, motors, power, electronics and fuel cell systems. We
already work closely with the sector through the joint Government
and industry-led Automotive Council to ensure that we can
identify and seize the opportunities for growth and
competitiveness as they arise.
We regularly meet the automotive companies, both new and of long
standing, to discuss a range issues, including future investment.
To ensure our automotive industry can thrive by leveraging
investment, we are providing Government support for new plants
and upgrades, as several Opposition Members mentioned. Companies
continue to show confidence in the UK, announcing major
investments across the country. [Interruption.] This is good
news, guys. Since 2021, we have seen £1 billion from Nissan and
Envision to create an EV manufacturing hub in Sunderland, a
world-class eco system that will drive growth at every stage of
the EV supply chain, from batteries to the finished product. We
have also seen £100 million from Stellantis to support electric
vehicle production at its site in Ellesmere Port, and Ford commit
additional funding to Halewood for its first EV component site in
Europe, bringing its total investment to £380 million. These
investments show that we have a track record of success, which is
why this site with the right firm can be just as successful.
I am proud that we are not just sticking to the tried and tested.
If we want to continue to succeed, we have to dare to do things
differently. That is why it is so important that the UK is also a
world leader in automotive research and development. Through the
Advanced Propulsion Centre, Government and industry have
committed more than £1.2 billion to accelerate the development
and commercialisation of strategically important emerging vehicle
technologies to strengthen the UK’s competitive edge in an
increasingly competitive world. That is a long-term strategy. The
APC estimates that projects we have supported will help to create
and safeguard more than 50,000 jobs, saving over 312 million
tonnes of CO2, which is the equivalent of removing the lifetime
emissions of more than 12.6 million cars.
What is incredibly exciting is that we are also supporting the
Faraday Battery Challenge with an overall budget of £544 million
for work to establish the UK as a battery science superpower, so,
as I said earlier, all the right ingredients are here. We are
investing nearly £80 million through Innovate UK in driving the
electric revolution, a programme to accelerate the capability and
growth of the electric supply chain for power, electronics,
machines and drives in the UK.
Industry recognises the depth and breadth of our innovation
economy, which puts eco right at the cutting edge of automotive
manufacturing. Just last week, Williams announced that it would
be opening a new plant for manufacturing advanced batteries for
HGVs in Kidlington. That is exactly the sort of investment that
we want to see come to all regions of the UK to build on more
than a century of vehicle manufacturing to deliver sustainable
growth and jobs for decades to come.
We have the infrastructure and the talent. Together, we can and
we will create a globally competitive electric vehicle supply
chain in the UK, boosting homegrown EV battery production and
levelling up across the country as we accelerate towards a
greener future that works for everyone. As my hon. Friend the
Member for Blyth Valley said towards the end of his speech, this
is a fantastic site. All the ingredients are in play. I cannot
comment on speculation in the press, but I can confirm that we
will of course take any credible options very seriously. We are
very committed to the site and I can assure the hon. Member for
Wansbeck that this Government are determined to make that site
work for Blyth and for the whole of the United Kingdom.
Question put and agreed to.
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