Colin Brown, director of engineering at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers said: “Ahead of the announcement later today by the Business Secretary Vince Cable of a UK industrial strategy, an industrial strategy from the Government is both welcome and long overdue. Industries like the energy, pharmaceutical and transport sectors need this long-term certainty in order to have the confidence to invest. It is also very positive that the Government will be making it easier for companies to access capital investment through the state-backed business bank.
“It is also plain that business cannot grow in the UK without the right skills and the right technologies to compete internationally. An industrial strategy should be as much about people and ideas as it is about finance and regulation.”
