Unipart’s Chairman calls for a clear picture of UK industrial strategy

/


Unipart’s Chairman calls for UK industrial strategy
Unipart’s Chairman calls for UK industrial strategy

The Government needs to give British companies a clear picture of the UK industrial strategy to compete in global markets to build investor confidence, according to Unipart’s Chairman John Neill in an interview with the BBC today.

Neill was responding to concerns that the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which offers billions of dollars in subsidies and tax credits to US businesses producing greener technologies, will impact UK companies.

The UK government recently announced it had no plans to provide similar subsidies and would not go toe-to-toe with its allies and get involved in what Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called “some distortive global subsidy race”.

The EU, however, has responded to the IRA with plans for a Net Zero Industry Act to increase its subsidies for the green industry.

Unipart Group Headquarters at Unipart House in Cowley, Oxford
Unipart Group Headquarters at Unipart House in Cowley, Oxford

According to Neill, Unipart has no intention of shifting its operations to the US, although there are fears that some other companies might do so.

“Unipart set out to build a world-class British company that can compete and operate globally.

“And so, for us to invest, we need to understand what Britain’s industrial strategy is and what our regulatory framework is going to be. And we’re not clear about any of that.”

Neill said that subsidies in the US and Europe have led Unipart to consider its future investment strategies abroad. “It goes against the grain,“ he said, ”we want to invest in Britain.”

Unipart Chief Executive Officer Darren Leigh reiterated Unipart’s commitment to the UK. Unipart will shortly release its financial results, in which the company will report a strong year in 2022 and continued growth this year.

The company will announce increased profits and revenue and lists several new contracts and contract extensions with existing customers.



More from The Oxford Magazine