National Manufacturing Day: priorities for the Burnham government

This year’s National Manufacturing Day is set to be busier than ever, as manufacturers across the UK will once again open their doors and invite the public behind the scenes to see manufacturing in action.

Today, the All-Party Parliamentary Manufacturing Group (APMG) is participating in National Manufacturing Day with an online roundtable, hosted by Group chair, Bill Esterson MP. At this meeting, stakeholders will discuss their priorities for Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government. In the run-up to his election as MP for Makerfield and appointment as Prime Minister, Burnham spoke of his appetite for ‘reindustrialisation’. The APMG is supportive of this goal, especially to increase the sector’s share of GDP, given that manufacturing jobs pay 8-10% more than the national average wage. However, this won’t happen overnight, and some vital policy changes are needed if Burnham’s plans for reindustrialisation are to be a success. The APMG is calling for urgent action on:

Energy costs. The UK’s industrial energy prices are amongst the highest in the world and present an existential threat to manufacturing businesses, particularly in energy-intensive industries such as steel, cement, fertiliser, and ceramics. Part of the reason that UK energy prices are so much higher than those of our European neighbours is the non-commodity, policy costs which are added by the Government. In its recent report the Manufacturing Commission recommended that the Government should significantly expand eligibility for the forthcoming British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS), which would remove these policy costs for many more manufacturing businesses.
Public procurement. ‘Buying British’ offers one of government’s main levers to ensure investment remains in the UK. The Government is overhauling the way that government contracts are awarded to prioritise domestic manufacturers and improve supply-chain resilience. However, it is important that these changes do not come at the expense of human rights or environmental protections.
Skills. There are currently around 50,000 vacancies across the manufacturing sector, and employers consistently cite the skills gap as one of the greatest constraints on growth and investment. Sustained funding for apprenticeships and technical training, and a stable long-term skills offer that gives employers confidence to invest, will be essential if the Government’s ten-year Industrial Strategy is to be a success.
Business support. Since the pandemic, the business environment has become increasingly challenging for manufacturing businesses, especially SMEs. Increased taxation at home, along with tariffs imposed by the US Government, and a post-Brexit increase in compliance requirements for different geographies have squeezed bottom lines and taken up vital leadership capacity. Providing manufacturers with a single, digital ‘front door’ will be vital for maintaining productivity. This will give them one place to access support for filing taxes, submitting grant applications, complying with new regulation, and other essential services. The Government’s new Business Growth Service is a step in the right direction, but this support should be specific to the manufacturing sector and integrated with the existing Made Smarter programme for digital adoption.