Earlier this month, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, along with
other local Chambers in the west of Scotland, supported the Clyde
Green Freeport bid. Two Scottish regions will be selected, and the
designated areas will benefit from tax reliefs, simplified customs
procedures, streamlined planning processes to boost redevelopment
and government support to promote regeneration and innovation.
The Clyde bid is multi modal and very much a public-private
partnership of the region's councils, together with Glasgow
Airport, Peel Ports, Mossend International Rail Freight Park and a
range of local businesses, all contributing towards a shared
ambition.
There is a strong and compelling case for this bid to be
successful as it would bring enormous benefits to the local
community. Since the region is at the heart of the Scottish
economy, currently providing almost 30% of the country's business
base and 34% of its jobs it stands to reason that the bid is good
for trade for the whole of Scotland.
The timing of the bids is important and comes as eight new
members have just been appointed to a prestigious Trade advisory
group, with the aim of growing Scotland's exports and delivering on
the objectives of 'A Trading Nation'. The creation of the
Clyde Green Freeport would be a massive step forward in helping to
achieve this ambition of increasing exporting businesses from
Scotland.
The bid also comes at a time when the British Chambers of
Commerce network is urging UK political leaders to aim
for bold reforms to boost world trade in goods and services
and it believes too many smaller businesses are still missing out
on export opportunities.
A Green Freeport in the West of Scotland would deliver practical
support for many of our businesses. Areas which already have
Freeport status include Teesside Freeport in Middlesbrough which is
hopeful of creating 18,000 jobs and has secured multimillion-pound
investment from GE Renewables to build a new offshore wind blade
manufacturing plant.
The businesses operating from within this freeport can already
import raw materials without tariffs and only pay a levy on
finished goods when they leave. The goods may also be exported
without UK duties having to be paid; something which would heavily
benefit Scotland and its exporting objectives.
The multi modal nature of the Clyde bid and the region's
connectivity are key and the private sector partners include James
McSporran, Port Director at Peel Ports' Clydeport who says:
"With its origins on the Clyde going back to 1858 initially as
Clyde Navigation trust, Clydeport has been a mainstay of supporting
industry by importing and exporting goods growing to one million
tonnes of cargo from its KGV facility to 60,000 containers moving
through Greenock''.
Ronald Leitch, operations director at Glasgow Airport,
says: "Already home to British Airways, Rolls Royce, the
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland and Boeing, becoming a
freeport will unlock huge development potential at the airport
cluster and bolster the west of Scotland's global reputation as a
centre of excellence for aerospace and advanced
manufacturing''.
The Glasgow City Region has a track record of success in
delivery such as one of the UK's largest and most advanced City
Deals, Commonwealth Games, COP26 and has unparalleled connectivity
and the bid will of course build on the legacy of COP26 and drive
an extensive programme of decarbonisation - including a modal shift
to cleaner logistics by air, rail and sea and building on projects
in district heating, electric cranes, a solar park and carbon
neutral ports. The bid is likely to create tens of thousands
of jobs, regenerate 600 hectares of vacant and derelict land in key
sites along the Clyde and accelerate our world-class innovation
eco-system.
The Glasgow City Region is Scotland's economic powerhouse with
exporting and innovation in our DNA. Two Scottish regions will be
selected for Green Freeport status in the next few months and we
are determined to be one of them.
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