The final countdown to the election has begun and with only one week left to go all the manifestos have been published. It is important  that the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats have all recognised the value of Industrial Strategy in their manifestos:

  • The Conservatives say that they will support Industrial Strategies in order to help people compete in the global race for high value, high knowledge jobs
  • Labour say they will support an active Industrial Strategy to build a long term investment culture, raise productivity and deliver a high-skilled workforce
  • The Liberal Democrats say they will continue to develop Industrial Strategies working with sectors to develop critical international trade

There is a broad consensus on the need to rebalance the UK economy through placing a greater emphasis on high value manufacturing and ensuring that it is nationwide. Industrial Strategies have a crucial part to play in facilitating this.

Industrial Strategies in the UK are delivering growth by supporting innovation in the supply chain, investing in higher-level skills and helping UK businesses win exports. Growth partnerships are up and running in the four sectors that ADS represents: aerospace, defence, security and space. These are  vital sectors to the UK, globally competitive and positioned in growing global markets.

Funding for collaborative initiatives such as the Aerospace Technology Institute, through the Aerospace Growth Partnership, has shown that the UK can attract multinational companies to invest here.

The political parties are right to support Industrial Strategies. To ensure the UK’s future success ADS would like to see the next government:

  • Commit to supporting and developing successful Industrial Strategies
  • Ensure that Industrial Strategies are cross-government priorities supported by a breadth of innovation, tax and skills policies
  • Prioritise and develop funding that strengthens programmes that support supply chain investment and growth

The next government will face difficult spending decisions, but it will have choices. Investing in Industrial Strategies will help to deliver growth and balance the nation’s books.