Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has launched the Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Plan that will set the parameters of how the UK will grow and deploy clean and digital manufacturing technologies.

As outlined in the Autumn Statement, the Government will commit more than £4.5bn in targeted funding. This includes support for batteries and industries undergoing fundamental changes as the world transitions to net-zero. Approximately £2bn has been earmarked for the automotive industry, including batteries, and £975m for aerospace.

The plan also outlines the key measures to improve the business environment and attract investment, including faster grid connections, full expensing and more apprenticeships.

To some extent it is also the UK answer to Biden’s IRA, and follows the news of the £2bn investment from Nissan in Sunderland, the £4bn Tata gigafactory, the £600m Electric Mini investment from BMW and Boeing’s £80m of aerospace manufacturing investment in Sheffield.

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.”

The plan focuses on: Investing in the future of UK manufacturing including a new Hydrogen Taskforce to deliver on the Government’s Hydrogen Strategy with a goal to reach up to 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030, with at least half coming from electrolytic or ‘green’ hydrogen; supply chain resilience that includes UK’s Battery Strategy; and reducing costs and barriers to business. Currently, the UK has both the lowest headline corporation tax rate in the G7 and the most generous capital allowances in the OECD group of major advanced economies.

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