UK Government launches AMP
Above: Kevin Craven, CEO, ADS.
Courtesy Billy Pix
As outlined by the Chancellor last week, the government will offer certainty to business by committing more than £4.5 billion in targeted funding to back the long-term future of the UK’s world-leading manufacturing industries – automotive, aerospace, clean energy and life sciences. This includes support for batteries and industries undergoing fundamental changes to remain at the forefront of the global transition to net zero.
The plan outlines the key measures to improve the business environment and attract investment, including faster grid connections, full expensing and more apprenticeships.
It will ensure the UK uses its competitive advantage in manufacturing to become a world leader in the development of zero emissions technology, taking advantage of the thousands of jobs on offer. Our world-leading track record of decarbonisation makes us well placed to seize opportunities in the new global green economy.
This package builds on recent investment wins including up to £2 billion investment from Nissan in Sunderland, the £4 billion Tata gigafactory, the £600 million Electric Mini investment from BMW and Boeing unlocking £80 million of aerospace manufacturing investment in Sheffield, and ensures that the government can continue to help create jobs, grow the economy, and secure the future of great British manufacturing.
Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch said: “The UK recently overtook France to become the world’s eighth largest manufacturing economy. The Advanced Manufacturing Plan will build on that success by targeting funding at where we have a competitive advantage.
“Industry wants a stable, long-term plan that has support for cutting edge technologies and a trade policy that delivers. The Advanced Manufacturing Plan does precisely that, securing the highly-skilled jobs of the future and driving economic growth.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “We are going full throttle to back British businesses and make the UK a world leader in manufacturing - which already makes up over 43 percent of all our exports and employs 2.6 million people across the country.
“Today’s plan will not only give the industry the long-term certainty they need to grow and invest further in the UK, but it will also lay the foundations to create more jobs and opportunities for people across the country.
“As we bring together the world’s biggest CEOs and investors together for the global investment summit tomorrow, this plan - backed by £4.5 billion - and the record sums of investment we’ve already attracted, make undoubtedly clear that the UK is open for business and is a vital part of our plan to grow the economy.”
The battery sector alone could create 100,000 highly paid and skilled jobs in the UK and the Government has also today published the UK’s first ever Battery Strategy, outlining our plan for the UK to attract investment and achieve a globally competitive battery supply chain by 2030.
Global companies are already choosing to invest in the UK and for every pound of Government investment in the future of manufacturing, we are leveraging five pounds of additional private sector investment, providing a welcome boost for industry ahead of next week’s Global Investment Summit.
The Advanced Manufacturing Plan will build on this success and ensure we’re creating the right conditions for manufacturing to flourish, and that bureaucracy does not get in the way of investment.
To boost growth in small and medium sized manufacturing businesses more widely, it has also been announced that the government will expand the Made Smarter Adoption programme, offering the scheme to all English regions in 2025-26 before working with the Devolved Administrations to explore expanding the programme further from 2026-27.
Industry Minister Nusrat Ghani said: “Growing the battery industry is vital to positioning the UK as the best location in the world to manufacture electric vehicles, and building on the confidence we've given our supply chain through recent successes such as the investments from Tata, BMW and Nissan, plus the wealth of government support available to businesses.
“I wanted to be ahead of the curve in working with Industry to produce a Battery Strategy. This will help businesses become more innovative and productive, future-proofing our economy and supporting our ambition towards a cleaner, greener future, and forms a crucial part of our Advanced Manufacturing Plan to back British industry for the long term.”
The plan focuses on:
Investing in the future of UK manufacturing A new Hydrogen Taskforce will maximise investment opportunities for the UK manufacturing of hydrogen propulsion systems. Hydrogen is expected to represent a crucial part of the UK’s future net zero energy system and is critical to supporting the UK’s energy security. The Government’s Hydrogen Strategy sets out ambitions to reach up to 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030, with at least half coming from electrolytic or ‘green’ hydrogen.
Building supply chain resilience The prize in getting our battery industry right alone is worth 100,000 jobs by 2040, with thousands of further jobs available in the wider sector. The UK’s Battery Strategy will seek to invest £50 million in developing the UK’s battery world-class capabilities, emphasising the importance of developing the batteries of the future by leveraging the UK’s world-leading research and innovation, securing a resilient UK manufacturing supply chain, and enabling the development of a vibrant and sustainable sector. John Pritchard, President of Civil Aerospace for GKN Aerospace said: “GKN Aerospace welcomes the Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Plan. To maintain its position as a global leader in aerospace manufacturing, the UK needs close collaboration between Government and Industry and significant investment to maintain our competitive advantage. This Plan is a step forward, providing important guidance for building resilience and increasing productivity in our manufacturing supply chain. “Coupled with the announcement to extend the funding of the Aerospace Technology Institute out to 2030/31, the Plan also provides further confidence and a stable base for international businesses to invest in the UK. “The Hydrogen Task Force is a particularly important and welcome development. Hydrogen will be at the core of future sustainable flight, as well as the UK’s wider economy and energy infrastructure. It is critical that Government and Industry collaborate now in order to develop and invest in the supply chain and position the UK as the destination of choice for investment in the future." Dr Rob Watson, President-Civil Aerospace, Rolls-Royce said: “We warmly welcome the ATI budget extension and the recognition of advanced manufacturing, and aerospace in particular, as priorities for the UK. The ATI extension provides long-term stability in aerospace funding that will allow for investment in technologies that will make our sector more competitive. “The ATI has been instrumental in accelerating the next generation of aerospace innovation since 2013, helping sustain the UK as a global leader in aerospace. The pace and scale of progress on our UltraFan demonstrator, the world’s largest and most advanced jet engine, would not have been possible without the ATI. This additional 5 year commitment to the ATI will give the aerospace industry confidence in the UK’s desire to grow and export.”
Kevin Craven, CEO of ADS said: “ADS and our members welcome today’s Advanced Manufacturing Plan publication, reaffirming long-term backing for our world-leading advanced manufacturing sectors, including UK aerospace. This is a very timely intervention given the growing pace of aerospace recovery, huge aircraft order backlog and industries’ continued commitment to net zero.
“Our aerospace sector provides high-skilled jobs throughout the country, and set against a backdrop of increasing global competition, the continued commitment towards aerospace R&D is significant. These measures will provide a boost to continued investment in innovation and advanced manufacturing in the UK, in turn securing the future advantage of our industry." Stephen Phipson, CEO of Make UK said: “A battery strategy is very welcome and much needed. Having a joined-up battery plan in place will be critical for the UK economy to benefit fully from new technological opportunities going forward, and we must ensure that manufacturing involves the entire supply chain, right from design to manufacturing and recycling, closely connecting car and battery industries.
“Recycling will also be very important to recover those critical materials that are essential for the low-carbon economy, and this joined up Advanced Manufacturing Plan will help deliver better coordination across the whole of the clean energy sectors. “Make UK and industry will continue to work with the government on the practicalities of this plan, including how to incorporate manufacturing supply chains. These supply chains have a key role in supplying components and services for clean energy in the future low-carbon economy and we must ensure that the full potential is delivered to enable our companies to compete on the global stage.”
