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Humber freeport given the green-light to begin operations

freeport

Humber freeport given the green-light to begin operations

The first three freeports, located in the Humber, Teesside and Thames regions, have been given the go-ahead to begin operations, it has been announced.

In total, eight sites are being established as part of the Spring Budget’s freeports package, with three sites set to begin operations next month.

Three new tax sites have been designated for land east of the Port of Hull, Goole and at the Able Marine Energy Park at North Killingholme.

Detailing the opportunity, the Budget Report said:

“At Spring Budget 2021, the government announced eight Freeports in eight English regions, which will encourage businesses from around the world to create new hubs of global trade that will transform economic prospects and job opportunities for local communities.

“The first tax sites will be in Humber, Teesside and Thames, and those freeports will be able to begin initial operations from November.”

The Humber developement, which is expected to create at least 1300 new jobs, was highlighted as the leading bid, led by Associated British Ports.

Simon Bird, Chairperson of Humber Freeport and ABP Humber’s Regional Director said:

“Humber Freeport is a new development to our area, which brings advantages to businesses. These advantages include easy access to international markets and access to raw materials without tariffs.

“The three new tax sites with attract new manufacturers with a host of benefits, but we won’t be forgetting about the existing businesses.

“We are hoping to create packages for the new businesses to incentivise them to use local existing business, to benefit our local supply chain.”

Councillor Rob Waltham, Leader of North Lincolnshire Council, added:

“This is a globally-significant investment which will be instrumental in creating well-paid, highly-skilled, sustainable jobs. It is a huge opportunity and I welcome the clear commitment from Government to levelling-up.

“This is additional evidence of Government confidence in our plans which we have designed to create jobs and increase prosperity across the area.”

Over £900m of private funds have already been invested in new factories to manufacture offshore wind turbine blades, foundations, towers and cables in Teesside, the Humber, Newcastle and Blyth, this year.

This has resulted in the creation of more than 2,500 new jobs in parts of these parts of the country.

The investment will continue to lay the groundwork for the UK to take advantage of the offshore market in the UK and internationally, and will support up to 60,000 jobs in the industry, while helping to eliminate the UK’s contribution to carbon emissions by 2050.

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