Invest 2035: harnessing the new Industrial Strategy

Christine Hart, legal director in the manufacturing and supply chain sector team at purpose-led independent law firm Brabners, explores what the government’s new draft Industrial Strategy means for the North West aerospace sector and how businesses can play their part in shaping it.

After a period of post-election anticipation, the Government recently started consultation on the UK’s first new Industrial Strategy in seven years, with the launch of a new Green Paper, Invest 2035.

The paper outlines the unique strengths and areas of untapped potential across UK industry. With a view to attracting the inward investment required to deliver sustainable growth, the paper was first shown to leaders from 300 of the world’s biggest companies at October’s International Investment Summit in London.

After a sustained period of low growth in the UK economy, there have long been calls for a new strategy with the potential to transcend governmental cycles, and businesses across the North West’s aerospace will welcome this renewed focus on driving the sector’s future prosperity.

Looking ahead, the onus is now on business leaders to engage with the consultation to encourage the formulation of a strategy that works for them.

Unpacking the plan

The consultation calls out eight growth-driving areas of focus for which investment will be the most beneficial. Ranging from advanced manufacturing and clean energy industries to defence and digital technologies, many of these are directly intertwined with the development of the aerospace sector.

The paper also emphasises the importance of regional development, drawing attention to the projected productivity gap of £47billion for economic performance outside of London and the South East.

Manchester in particular is identified as a strategic cluster for the advanced manufacturing industry – news that won’t come as a surprise to the region’s businesses and academic institutions that have been at the forefront of the sector’s innovation for a number of years.

Job creation will also be at the heart of the strategy, dovetailing with Labour’s recently announced employment reforms. However, the UK’s technical skills gap – key to the advanced manufacturing and clean energy industries – is identified in the paper as an obstacle to growth.

This is an issue particularly relevant to the aerospace sector, with the latest industry data suggesting there are more than 10,000 unfilled vacancies in the sector – many of which will be here in the North, home to a number of major employers. As new technologies present exciting possibilities for the sector’s progression, it’s important that the Government uses this consultation to identify which areas – be it vocational training or the development of digital skills – will allow the sector to best capitalise on these innovations.

A plan for all

Crucially, the paper outlines a blueprint for consultation, and calls for extensive input from businesses, trade unions, local leaders and industry experts.

The Government will oversee its creation, supported by an advisory panel – but ultimately, it envisages the strategy being built from the bottom up, with businesses working with local government to create frameworks that answer the specific needs of their geographical region and local strengths.

Initiatives such as the NWAA’s Lancashire Watchtower program are a prime example of how a localised approach can identify the most effective way to channel investment and resources to have a real impact. So, it’s key that businesses are making their voices heard – be it to vocalise the challenges they’ve faced in delivering sustainable growth or to outline the areas they think present the most exciting opportunities for investment.

Similarly, giving businesses the certainty that they need to invest will require the Government to develop stable regulatory frameworks that can facilitate the growth and adoption of new technologies. Therefore, the Government is keen to understand the current regulatory landscape, and how it is working for businesses across the board.

Through this audit, it will be able to identify the measures that are no longer fit for purpose and locate gaps in the current legislation, allowing it to formulate the necessary guardrails for businesses to thrive.

For the aerospace sector, this will be a critical step towards encouraging the adoption of nascent technologies such as additive manufacturing and sustainable air fuels that offer huge potential in facilitating the transition to a greener future.

Shaping the strategy

With this in mind, it’s important that the North West’s aerospace businesses find the best channels through which to amplify their voices.

At Brabners, we set up our True North network as a forum and platform for purpose-led organisations, all united by the common goal of unlocking the latent potential of the Northern economy.

With over member 300 organisations, the network acts as a forum to share best practice, learn from each other, and open up opportunities for collaboration. Alongside allowing businesses to pool knowledge and resources, we seek to engage key political stakeholders through the True North Advisory Council to help inform future policy decisions – a mission we outlined through a recent letter to Metro Mayors and local Government.

Currently, the Council is focusing its resources on four key growth areas: purpose and social impact, people, skills and the future, innovation and change, and sustainable growth – priorities that tie directly into the Government’s ambitions.

With the North West’s aerospace sector primed to play a key role in this regional growth, now is an opportune time to join the network and collaborate in our common goal of pursuing purpose-led growth.

It’s evident that the Industrial Strategy presents an exciting opportunity to supercharge the growth of the UK economy – and the abundance of knowledge and expertise displayed across the True North network is proof that we have the resources to make it a success.

But businesses cannot rely on the Government to facilitate change without meaningful input.

For more information on Brabners’ True North network and how it can provide your organisation a platform to deliver positive change, visit: https://www.brabners.com/true-north