UK-France Forge £1bn Investment, Industrial Strategy
The UK and France have launched a new Industrial Strategy Partnership following a successful UK-France Summit, where over £1 billion worth of investment deals into the UK have been confirmed.
New Partnership is first of its kind in Europe, boosting UK-France collaboration in key high growth sectors.
Follows a successful UK-France Summit, where leading firms announced a billion pounds worth of investment creating thousands of highly skilled jobs.
Deals are the latest vote of confidence and show the Plan for Change is working – as recent survey puts UK as joint-top global investment destination.
A new partnership between the UK and France will deepen economic collaboration and unlock billions in valuable investment into high growth-driving sectors – boosting the economy and delivering on the Plan for Change.
The announcement comes following yesterday’s 37th UK-France Summit, where leading French companies announced investments worth over £1 billion into the UK, creating thousands of highly-skilled jobs across the country – helping to put more money in people’s pockets.
This builds on the tidal wave of investment the government has welcomed into the UK since taking Office, worth over £100 billion, alongside 384,000 jobs created since the election.
The partnership forms part of the UK’s recent modern Industrial Strategy – a new approach that will create a more connected, high-skilled and resilient economy to kickstart an era of economic prosperity, the central mission in the government’s Plan for Change.
This partnership is a collaboration in key growth sectors including in technology, clean energy industries and advanced manufacturing, supporting a quicker green and digital transition and building our economic resilience to drive economic growth and innovation.
It advances a cross-Channel trade relationship worth £104 billion in 2024 and reaffirms the UK’s position as a global investment destination, the same week a Deloitte survey found that international finance leaders see the UK as the joint-most attractive destination when it comes to investment.
It also builds on the strong collaboration which already exists between the UK and France across vital areas including energy, aviation, tech and finance – all of which fall under the key growth sectors identified in the government’s modern Industrial Strategy.
Today’s announcement follows Wednesday’s roundtable attended by leading French and British firms hosted by the Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, French Economy, Finance and Industry Minister Eric Lombard and French Digital Affairs Minister Clara Chappaz.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said:
This is our first Industrial Strategy Partnership with a major European partner, and will combine our joint expertise across energy, advanced manufacturing, technology and more, helping deliver our Plan for Change by boosting growth to deliver more money in people’s pockets.
Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said:
This milestone is an exciting new chapter in our already strong relationship with France and will boost both countries’ key sectors by driving two-way innovation and investment, delivering on our Plan for Change.”
Our Modern Industrial Strategy is a 10-year plan to kickstart an era of economic prosperity and this partnership will serve as a welcome anchor at a time of significant geopolitical uncertainty. It is built on the best of foundations, with both our businesses and citizens sharing deep links.
Today’s deals show that the UK is open for international companies to expand their businesses in a wide range of priority sectors, including:
Veolia has announced a £70 million investment to transform an existing, disused industrial facility to a state-of-the-art plastics sorting and recycling facility in Shropshire, creating more than 130 local jobs.
Thales, in conjunction with partners, is planning £40 million of AI-focussed R&D investment as part of its CortAIx UK AI Accelerator, which will employ 200 people.
Comand AI are investing £35 million over the next five years to set up an office in the UK, in their first step to becoming a pan-European defence company.
Pernod Ricard is investing a further £17.5 million in its Scotch whisky producer, Chivas Brothers, to create two new bottling lines at its Kilmalid site near Glasgow.
LVMH will operate at least twenty Sephora stores by 2028, with a need of 800 additional recruitments.
EDF confirmed earlier this week that thousands of UK jobs and apprenticeships will be created as it announced it will take a 12.5% stake in Sizewell C – in a major boost for UK growth and energy security. Assystem will double its nuclear workforce in the UK, creating 1,000 new engineering, digital and project management jobs. Urenco also signed a 15-year deal with EDF to produce fuel for nuclear power stations, supporting Urenco UK’s workforce of more than 1,400 people.
French company Ardian has also in the last week finalised its acquisition of an additional 10% stake in London Heathrow as a gateway for growth with a further £888 million investment, taking their investment into the airport to £2.85 billion, supporting the site’s 80,000 jobs.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds also met with French Economy, Finance and Industry Minister Éric Lombard yesterday, to discuss the importance of French investment in the UK and how this new partnership will enable more collaboration in key sectors such as clean energy, tech and economic resilience.
UK companies are also continuing to succeed in the French market, delivering on the government’s AI opportunities action plan, from capability to R&D. British tech unicorns are winning tens of millions of pounds in significant contracts with French corporates, driving jobs and growth at home.
This includes Synthesia’s new partnership with Decathlon to create a pioneering AI avatar lab, ElevenLabs’ collaboration with M6 and TV5 Monde, and Darktrace’s contract with GL Events, a French major events operator. BT is also connecting more than 80 French-headquartered companies including Alstom and Michelin in France, with operations totalling approximately £130 million last financial year.
The refresh of the Lancaster House defence partnership is also creating new opportunities in the UK’s aerospace and defence sectors, supporting over 2,750 highly skilled jobs and representing billions to the UK and French economies through joint export promotion and capability projects which benefit the UK’s defence industries, including MBDA and Airbus.
The agreement with France follows the Industrial Strategy Partnership committed to between the UK and Japan in March, preceding publication of the Strategy in June.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/over-1bn-in-investment-deals-as-uk-france-launch-new-industrial-strategy-partnership