PRESS RELEASE : Jobs and investment boost for Thames region as Freeport gets green light [March 2023]

The press release issued by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on 20 March 2023.

Thames Freeport has received final government sign off, unlocking new high-quality jobs and much-needed investment.

New high-quality jobs and much-needed investment for the Thames Estuary region will be unlocked today, as the Thames Freeport receives final government sign off.

The Freeport will now receive up to £25 million seed funding from government and potentially hundreds of millions in locally retained business rates to drive growth in the UK’s advanced manufacturing, biomanufacturing, logistics, and low carbon industries.

It will help drive investment into sectors including automated and electric vehicles, renewable energy and battery storage, generating thousands of jobs and boosting the local economy.

Levelling Up Minister Dehenna Davison said:

We’re delivering on our mission to grow the economy and level up right across the UK.

Thames Freeport is up and running and will bring high quality jobs, investment and trading opportunities for businesses in the region.

Taking full advantage of the freedoms of leaving the EU, businesses in Freeports are offered generous tax incentives and a simplified customs procedure, unlocking much-needed investment and high-quality jobs.

Robin Mortimer, Maritime UK Chair said:

This latest wave of Freeport approvals is a major boost for UK maritime and the wider levelling-up agenda. Business, and the wider communities, will now be able to benefit from the wave of investment, development and jobs that Freeports are projected to generate.

Thames Freeport estimates that it will generate over 12,000 new jobs, and as a gateway to London, its hubs are well placed to provide global shipping routes for exporting UK produced goods and importing vital products for supply chains.

The hub includes three tax sites located at:

• London Gateway – the UK’s most integrated logistics hub and one of the world’s fastest growing container ports, connecting over 130 ports and 65 countries and handling almost 2 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEU) annually
• Tilbury – London’s major port, with a throughput of 16 million tonnes per annum with an estimated value of £8.7 billion
• Ford’s world-class Dagenham Engine Plant – London’s largest manufacturing location for over 90 years

The government’s Freeport programmes is moving at pace, with five sites now fully operational in England, already creating thousands of jobs. In January the Government confirmed two new Green Freeports will be established in Inverness and Cromarty Firth and Firth of Forth.

Freeports are central to unleashing economic growth across the entire United Kingdom and will drive the UK’s shift to a dynamic, low-carbon economy, helping businesses to collaborate, innovate, and develop the technologies and supply chains that will underpin our journey to Net Zero.