Around a quarter of the investments announced by the government at this week’s summit are thought to have been secured or started before Labor came to power.
Ministers touted the £63bn investment and hosted hundreds of business executives at a summit on Monday to unveil Britain’s pro-growth policies.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds touted the “record amount of investment secured at today’s summit”, while Chancellor Rachel Reeves said: “My optimism for the UK increases following the investment secured as part of this summit”. “The outlook is brighter than ever.” ”
But analysis by the Guardian suggests that £16.5bn of this was secured before July’s election.
One of the most valuable investments announced in a Department for Business (DBT) press release was asset management company Blackstone’s £10bn investment to build a data center in Biss, Northumberland. .
But Glen Sanderson, leader of Northumberland County Council, told the Guardian the deal was first announced by the Conservative-run council in April. He said it was surprising that the government did not recognize the council’s achievements.
The department also announced a £2.5bn investment from US data center developer CyrusOne. Plans for one of the CyrusOne data centers were submitted to local authorities in 2022. Another £1.9bn data center investment by US company CloudHQ appears to have been in development since 2018.
DBT officials stressed that while some details of the project were made public by the company during the Conservative government, the final investment announcement was accelerated under the Conservative government.
Another announcement was that Turkish conglomerate Eren Holdings has confirmed a £1bn investment in the redevelopment of Shotton Mill in Deeside, north Wales. However, the local government had approved expansion plans for 2022.
US nuclear engineering company Holtec is said to have invested £325m in a new factory in South Yorkshire that will create hundreds of jobs. However, the investment appears to have been planned before Labor came to power. The BBC reported in May that Holtec had shortlisted four sites in the UK for the factory, with a final decision to be made in the autumn.
A new battery development in Hampshire, one of the deals secured at the summit, was already announced by BW Group in April last year.
Imperial College London’s WestTech Corridor project, a hub for science, technology and innovation, was also on the investment list, but was first announced in March, months before Labor came to power. .
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A government spokesperson said: “Each deal announced at the record international investment summit represents a new commitment for businesses to invest in the UK as a result of the actions taken by the government.”
“The leaders of many of these companies have welcomed our approach as the driving force behind their decisions to deliver economic growth across the UK, contributing to £63 billion of investment and around 38,000 jobs. .”
Industry Secretary Sarah Jones told the House of Commons after the summit: “The £63 billion is not a lie.”
Addressing former Conservative economy minister Kevin Hollinrake, Mr Jones said: “Remember, Monday’s summit was planned in a matter of weeks…yet we invested twice as much compared to last year’s summit. We have secured it,” he said.
In its announcement, the department also highlighted a new £130m development by consumer healthcare company Hareon. However, in May the company announced it would close one of its UK factories, resulting in the loss of 435 jobs, and move production to Slovakia.
Monday’s summit was held at the 15th-century Guildhall in the heart of the City of London and was attended by hundreds of executives from global companies including Goldman Sachs, BlackRock and HSBC. .
Executives were treated to a special reception with King Charles, food prepared by three-star Michelin chef Claire Smith and a live performance by Elton John.
