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North East needs defence

Business leaders have urged the Government to do more to make sure vital military contracts stay in the UK. Robin Fox, the Managing Director of Northern Defence Industries Ltd, made the call at a conference last week.

Mr Fox told how more than 20,000 jobs in the region depend directly on Ministry of Defence contracts and the business is crucial in helping the companies survive the recession. However, defence work could play an even bigger role in the recovery, if less was sub-contracted to foreign firms, in the hope of saving money.

But now the NDI has suggested the Government guarantee that a percentage of the work stays in the UK.

Mr Fox said: “The defence industry is worth £2 billion-a-year and 20,000 jobs in the North East. It is keeping many companies afloat in the recession. Defence work in general terms in the UK but specifically in the North East could be a major part in the process of recovery for the economy.

“It means input in higher levels of technology, secure long-term business and well-paid jobs. At the moment, because defence is a global business, you often find that bigger prime contractors will place work overseas, either to satisfy their own offset requirements or because of the cheaper lines of supply.

“From a business point of view, that makes a lot of sense but if you want to affect the recovery in the UK, then you might want more of that spend to be spent in the UK.

“I think the Government, through the Ministry of Defence, could have an influence on more business being placed in the UK.”

The calls were made at the start of the NDI annual conference at the Marriott Hotel, in Gosforth, Newcastle, which is being attended by around 200 business leaders, politicians and Government officials.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .