Minister for Industry (): As part of its Industrial
Strategy, the Government has announced a new £2 billion programme
to unlock investment into our automotive industry, DRIVE35
(‘Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification').
Building on the successes of the Automotive Transformation Fund
and Advanced Propulsion Centre R&D programmes, this programme
will support the latest research and development, accelerate
commercial scale up, and unlock capital investment in zero
emission vehicles, batteries and the wider supply chain. It will
ensure continuity in Government support while transitioning to a
new funding offer for investors that is much simpler, clearer and
faster. The new programme will work alongside the National Wealth
Fund, as part of a comprehensive offer to attract strategic
investments.
DRIVE35 will provide long-term certainty to investors, with
capital funding over five years and R&D funding for ten
years, to 2035. This long-term commitment is a vote of confidence
in the sector, supporting its transformation to unlock growth and
enable competitiveness.
We will release further detail in the coming weeks, and will
continue to engage with industry as we take forward our plans.
As with all financial assistance, Government will disburse
DRIVE35 funding via specific spending powers. As part of the
requirements for capital spending under Section 8 of the
Industrial Development Act 1982, today Government is tabling a
parliamentary motion seeking authorisation to disburse up to £1bn
(of DRIVE35's total £2bn) via s.8. The motion is as follows and
will be debated in due course:
“That this House authorises the Secretary of State to
undertake, during the period beginning with the date of approval
of this motion and ending on 31 July 2030, to pay, by way of
financial assistance under section 8 of the Industrial
Development Act 1982, grants to businesses as part of His
Majesty's Government's project to support zero-emission vehicle
manufacturing in the UK and the UK's automotive supply chain,
including to support the creation of jobs, private investment
into the UK, the development of the automotive industry and
emission reductions, up to an overall limit of £1 billion, and to
pay during or after that period the grants that are undertaken to
be paid.”
