Manufacturers welcome Government investment
MANUFACTURERS in the West Midlands have welcomed the Government’s decision to invest £50m into the sector’s leading support body and launch a review into the future of advanced manufacturing.
Ministers have agreed to invest £50m into the Manufacturing Advisory Service to support growth in the sector.
The organisation was one of the few to escape relatively unscathed in the Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review in the autumn. Ministers said they recognised the importance of the manufacturing sector in helping to steer the economy back into growth and agreed to continue funding the body, albeit in a reduced format.
Simon Griffiths, chief executive of the Manufacturing Advisory Service – West Midlands (MAS-WM) said: “We are very pleased to hear that BIS are committed to funding MAS going forward. We are expecting to hear more details behind this announcement in the next few days.”
The announcement of renewed funding came after the Government abandoned plans to publish a manufacturing framework in favour of incorporating its plans for the sector in its wider “growth review”, which will report next year.
Business Minister Mark Prisk said: “A strong manufacturing base is essential for a balanced economy, where exports and investment drive growth, not debt and unsustainable government spending.
“The review into Advanced Manufacturing will see the Government align with industry in our shared ambition to put manufacturing industries on a more solid footing than in the past decade.
“I am looking forward to the manufacturing summit which will be an opportunity to agree actions that Government, industry and education can take over the next 10 years to meet our challenging ambitions.
“While recent statistics have shown the future is bright for manufacturing the job losses announced by BAE systems show that there remains challenges that the Government will need to work with industry to address.”
The Government has announced plans for an “advanced manufacturing summit” in January to be attended by manufacturers and key Ministers including Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.
The Department for Business Innovation and Skills is also spending £600,000 on a two year automation and robotics programme to be developed and run by the Engineering and Machinery Alliance and the British Automation and Robot Association.
John Cridland, CBI Director-General Designate, also welcomed the announcement. He said: “This review fits with our vision for the manufacturing sector and is a good step on the way to the Government’s wider Growth Review.”
