Business backs free port plan for city region
BUSINESSES IN the Tees Valley are backing calls for the city region to become a pilot free port to boost growth and create thousands of jobs post-Brexit.
Global firms including Hitachi Rail, Sirius Minerals, Liberty Steel and Quorn Foods have signed a letter to Chancellor Philip Hammond, calling for a study to be jointly commissioned with the Government investigating the pros and cons of setting up a free port, using the Tees Valley as a test case.
The bid by Mayor Ben Houchen has won local cross-party support with Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland MP Simon Clarke and Redcar MP Anna Turley also backing the campaign.
Mr Houchen said: “When we leave the EU, Britain will find itself with more freedoms than at any time in almost half a century. Whether you voted leave or remain, we need to look to the future and at the opportunities that are ahead.
“Free port status for Tees Valley will be transformational for local people. Not only would we become an international magnet for businesses wanting to set up here, it’ll also mean more jobs for local people.
“There is grit and a natural optimism in places like Tees Valley when it comes to Britain’s place in the world. We are and always have been an open, outwardlooking part of the world, ready and willing to embrace new opportunities.
“Our industrial roots, current businesses and future plans for the world-class South Tees Development Corporation site mark us out as a manufacturing powerhouse to be reckoned with.
“So as we take back control of our trade policy, I want to ensure we capitalise on these new freedoms to ensure we’re best placed to benefit from all that Brexit brings.”
Jerry Hopkinson, PD Ports’ chief operating officer, said: “We welcome this call for a pilot study into the viability of free ports.
“This significant work could represent a step-change in how we, and many other firms across the country, do business for the better.
“Having free port status would provide the opportunity to attract further inward investment, create a platform for growth and help to develop long-term sustainable industries for the Tees Valley and the local and regional economy.”
Paul Booth, Tees Valley Local Enterprise Partnership chair, said businesses were eager to see the “exciting” plans become a reality, adding: “It would rewrite the rulebook on what could be achieved in terms of growth.
“We need new solutions for a new era and evidence points to free ports being a successful way of supporting our local businesses and puts Tees Valley in a strong position to capitalise post-Brexit.”
The bid was also endorsed by Mike Matthews, Nifco UK managing director and a leading voice in the North-East manufacturing sector. He said free port status would put them on an equal footing with other manufacturing world-leaders, increase the number of high-quality jobs and bring in further investment.