Government Freeports scheme to ‘turbocharge’ post-Brexit growth

The Government wants to open up to ten new “Freeports” across the UK.

A consultation has been launched setting out the vision for Freeports, with the aim of announcing the location of the new zones at the end of this year so they can be open for business in 2021.

The Government says Freeports will boost trade, jobs and investment, while offering an opportunity for cutting-edge customs, transport and green technologies to be trialled in controlled environments, before being adopted more widely.

It adds that benefits of the Freeports model could include:

• Goods brought into a Freeport do not attract tariffs until they leave the Freeport and enter the domestic market.
• No duty is payable if they are re-exported.
• When raw materials are imported and processed into a final good, duties are only paid on the final good.
• Freeports could be located inland as well as adjacent to ports. This can reduce relocation or investment costs for existing manufacturing sites near ports.
• A full customs declaration would not be required to move goods into a Freeport. This saves businesses time and makes it easier to import goods.
• Planning reforms to help sea ports develop within their boundaries and empower local councils to greenlight much-needed local construction projects.
• A regeneration agenda to level up the local areas around Freeports.

Once the 10-week consultation is completed, the Government will invite sea, air and rail ports to bid for Freeport status on a competitive basis.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Rishi Sunak, said: “Freeports will unleash the potential in our proud historic ports, boosting and regenerating communities across the UK as we level up.

“They will attract new businesses, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities up and down the country.

“This is all part of our mission as an open, outward-looking country, championing global free trade with vibrant Freeports that work for all of the UK.”

Secretary of State for International Trade, Liz Truss, said: “We are taking back control of our trade policy, and opening every corner of the UK to opportunities across the world.

“Freeports will unleash the potential of our historic ports, creating jobs and regenerating communities across the UK. These hubs will also deepen partnerships around the world as we restore our economic and political independence.”

Business Secretary, Andrea Leadsom, said: “Freeports represent a fantastic opportunity for our businesses to increase their trade with companies from all over the world.

“Not only will they help create jobs and level up the UK, but they underscore our commitment to championing global free trade – unleashing our country’s potential.”

Communities and Local Government Secretary, Robert Jenrick, said: “Our new Freeports will drive forward investment and regeneration, delivering high-skilled jobs and new homes for people across the country.”

Minister for the Northern Powerhouse, Jake Berry, said: “People across the Northern Powerhouse can look forward to a new era of jobs and prosperity unlocked by this new generation of Freeports.

“They will unleash the potential of communities both by boosting trade with our friends across the globe and transforming surrounding areas into hotbeds of innovation where businesses will grow and create new well-paid jobs.”

Henri Murison, director of Northern Powerhouse Partnership, responded: “We have a number of international gateways across the Northern Powerhouse, from the Humber to the Mersey, the river Tees to Barrow, that could benefit from incentivised status to attract industry.

“The detail of these proposals will need to guarantee significant additional growth, in particular in trade, to justify their designation.”

“Across the North, our ports should be trading goods from Europe to North America and vice versa, if only our rail links across the Pennines in particular were up to it.

“If the government can enhance these links through delivering promised capacity, there is a case for linking these trade flows to specific sectors and the detail for this network of free ports that connect together will be presented as a detailed case in response to the consultation.”

A spokesman for the Humber Local Enterprise Partnership said: “The Humber LEP welcomes the Government’s consultation into Freeports and we look forward to working with organisations across the region to develop our response in the coming weeks.

“The Humber Estuary is home to the UK’s largest ports complex and has the space to support further growth. As such, it is essential the region is considered as part of this proposal.

“As evidenced by the success of the Humber Enterprise Zone, giving an area special status can attract both investment and jobs and can bolster economic regeneration.”