It was a pleasure hosting another successful Solent Business Forum event, and I thank Sally Thompson, CEO of Business South, for attending as our guest speaker and addressing the Forum.
Local businesses are the life-blood of Fareham and the Solent area, so it’s important that we maintain regular communication about the issues affecting them and how I can assist both from a policy/legislative perspective, and on the specific issues facing business in the area.
The Solent Business Forum is a fantastic opportunity for business to engage in constructive dialogue with their local MP about the issues which matter most to them, and gives me the opportunity to listen and raise their concerns, ideas or proposals with the Government and campaign for them in Westminster.
The top issue to come up in the discussion was local transport infrastructure and its impact on growth and jobs in the area. Having an effective transport infrastructure, with proper investment and support from local and national government is fundamental to economic growth, prosperity and jobs creation.
There were calls from business leaders for better rail services between Portsmouth and Southampton, others raised the issue of congestion on the M27 and the need for urgent upgrades to improve the flow of traffic, and there was support for greater airport capacity in the area and a water taxi scheme to connect Portsmouth, Fareham and Southampton.
The Solent region has a population of more than 1.3million people and over 50,000 businesses. So it is in the national interest that we have a thriving economy and contribute to national growth. To realise the potential of the Solent, and Fareham, we need to ensure that businesses are supported with an effective and efficient transport infrastructure.
I recently met with the Prime Minister and separately with the Chancellor to raise the issue of congestion on the M27 and to argue that funding must be earmarked for Stubbington Bypass in the Autumn Statement, and I will continue to campaign for improvements.
This was our first event since June 23rd, so there was also a lot of interest in Brexit, particularly trade and growth after Brexit and its impact on and opportunities for business in the area.
There was a lot of optimism from business leaders, and they have every reason to be confident about the future. According to the IMF the UK is the fastest growing G7 economy this year; the UK economy grew faster than expected in the three months after the Brexit vote; according to Markit, business confidence has returned to pre-referendum level; and manufacturing activity in September grew month on month at its fastest rate since June 2014.
Business representatives who wish to find out more about the Forum can contact me on [email protected]