Business Secretary unveils £600 million for British aerospace - including greener air travel
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has announced a £600 million package to back British aerospace as he returns to his old brief under a new prime minister.
Listen to this article
Mr Reynolds, who has been appointed as Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Secretary in Andy Burnham’s Cabinet, will unveil the funding at the Farnborough International Airshow.
It includes some £500 million for aerospace research and technology projects for greener air travel, and £100 million for a supply chain fund to help meet demand.
Airbus, Rolls-Royce, GKN Aerospace, Safran and the trade body ADS are among the partners for the supply chain fund.
Mr Reynolds said: “Aerospace is one of Britain’s great industrial success stories.
"Partnerships like this show the power of bringing business and innovation together to harness our strong manufacturing base and cutting-edge research to support skilled jobs right across the UK.”
Read More: Trump ally warns Andy Burnham and Donald Trump are on course for ‘rocky relationship’
Read More: A fairer bus fare is just the start, writes Andy Burnham
This comes as Prime Minister Andy Burnham has told his Cabinet ministers to take a “hard look” at their departmental budgets as questions mount over how he will fund a string of major spending commitments.
The Prime Minister has announced plans worth more than £1 billion in his first 72 hours in office, including £340 million to tackle rough sleeping and an £850 million package aimed at cutting energy bills.
He is also expected to restore the £2 cap on bus fares, a move experts estimate could cost around £300 million a year.
Speaking at his first Cabinet meeting in Downing Street, Mr Burnham said ministers must find ways, both “big and small”, to ease pressure on household budgets.
“We need to be a cost-of-living Government,” he told his Cabinet. “Getting that cost of living down, looking at all possible ways of doing that.”