Build Back Better Business Council meeting: 29 July 2021
PM Boris Johnson chaired a meeting of the Build Back Better Business Council.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson chaired a meeting of the Build Back Better Business Council this morning, the first in-person meeting this year following a series of virtual meetings.
The Prime Minister opened the discussion by emphasising the importance of getting the economy moving and turning the success of the vaccine roll out programme into jobs and economic growth.
The Prime Minister was updated on the progress being driven forward by industry leaders on six key priorities including; investment in innovation, growing the UK Science and Tech sectors, accelerating the roll out of electric vehicle infrastructure, off-shore wind development, levelling up and boosting skills in emerging sectors.
The discussion began with the Prime Minister welcoming action to accelerate the development of British made electric vehicles. This coincided with an announcement from the Electric Vehicle Fleet Accelerator Group, made up of seven major UK companies who have pledged to buy 70,000 British made electric vans by 2030. This move, the Prime Minister said, made clear that there was home grown demand for manufacturers to capitalise on and he asked the group to take forward urgent work to deliver this.
The group also discussed co-delivering progress in areas including mobilising local leadership on levelling up, investing in research and development, and tackling skills gaps in emerging sectors such as green jobs, construction and digital. They also welcomed the Innovation Strategy published last week.
The International Trade Secretary drew the meeting to a close by endorsing the upcoming Global Investment Summit due to take place in September – which will see the government roll out the green carpet for investors from across the world.