Against a challenging economic background, today’s Budget offers further detail to the UK’s plans for economic recovery and builds on the government’s National Infrastructure Strategy and 10 Point Plan.
The UK hosting COP26 in November, the launch of the UK’s first sovereign green bond and the creation of a UK Infrastructure Bank reaffirms the commitment to incentivise more environmentally friendly behaviour among the public and businesses. We wholeheartedly support this commitment and want to play our part in making it a great success.
Our future economic resilience and prosperity depends on rebalancing and investment in our towns and cities across the UK. Funding for the Holyhead hydrogen hub, accelerated city and growth deals, and the new towns deals, have the potential to kickstart growth of green jobs and bring wider economic benefit.
We believe the government’s decision to move forward with eight new freeports and the Global Centre of Rail Excellence project in Neath will provide significant opportunities to support regeneration, job creation and investment. These have the potential to boost the ambition to ‘level up’, and act as a cornerstone for an innovative, productive, resilient and low carbon society.
I am proud to say that Mott MacDonald is at the forefront of helping to decarbonise transport and delivering inclusive social outcomes in communities across the UK.
Cathy Travers, UK and Europe regional business managing director