On Friday 18th Sept, East Anglian Business and Education Leaders submitted a letter to the Prime Minister, urging the government to recognise the urgency of approving Sizewell C. The letter highlights the Local and Regional support for Sizewell C and the huge local employment, education and skills opportunities the project will deliver.
The letter reads:
We are writing to highlight our support for Sizewell C and the opportunity it offers to tackle the climate emergency and progress to ‘Net Zero’ while boosting the economy in Suffolk and throughout East Anglia.
We come from across communities, political parties and economic sectors. We ask the UK Government and the Suffolk local authorities to recognise the urgency of making this project a reality. We face the possibility of the deepest recession this country has experienced since records began. The East of England and especially Suffolk is in a position to host a necessary major infrastructure project which will generate huge local employment, education and skills opportunities as well as delivering welcome infrastructure improvements and the potential for wider energy and environmental benefits such as the production of hydrogen.
We have seen the employment created at Hinkley Point C in Somerset and note that nearly half of the jobs have been taken by local people. Over 650 apprentices have worked on the site. Contracts with businesses in the region have reached £1.7bn. We should be proud that the value of contracts with East of England businesses for the Hinkley Point C project is now nearly £1bn. That offers a great foundation for these regional firms if Sizewell C starts soon.
We simply must take this opportunity for the benefit of our region’s young people. They deserve the same opportunities at Sizewell C, which will bring at least 1,500 apprenticeships and thousands of jobs to the area during an employment crisis. Turning down this opportunity begs the question of where else these benefits to the county are going to come from and where the electricity will be generated from instead?
We support Sizewell C because we want to help Suffolk’s young people stay and develop their skills in the county so they can live, work and bring up their families in an area with a bright future.
Sizewell C is a landmark project for Suffolk and the wider area, and we urge all partners to work constructively to maximise the economic benefits and minimise the traffic and environmental impacts of the scheme. This is a prize we must not lose.
We support Sizewell C because we support Suffolk and the East of England.
Signed:
John Dugmore, CEO Suffolk Chamber of Commerce
Paul Briddon, Chair, Suffolk Chamber of Commerce
Chris Starkie, CEP New Anglia LEP
Doug Field, Chair New Anglia LEP
Richard Tunnicliffe, Director East of England CBI
Biplab Rakshi, Chair, East of England Institute of Directors
Penny Morgan, East Anglia Area Lead, Federation of Small Businesses
Simon Gray, CEO East of England Energy Group
Alex Till, CEO, Suffolk MENTA
Dr Saul D Humphrey – Chair of New Anglia LEP’s Building Growth
Johnathan Reynolds, Managing Director, Opergy
Andrew Harston, ABP Regional director, Wales & Short Sea Ports
Steve Britt, Managing Director, Anchor Storage
Gareth Clements, Operations Director, Ardent Hire Solutions
John Prothero, Director of Nuclear, BAM Nuttall
James Haddon, Regional Director, Barhale
John Breheny, Owner and CEO, Breheny
Bee Kemball, Managing Director, Debach Warehousing and Distribution
Andrew Brown, Commercial Director, Falcon Tower Crane Services
James Farman, Managing Director, Leyplant
Mark Hodder, Managing Director, Ovivo Water Ltd
Bill Hiron, Managing Director, Stephensons and Galloways Coaches
Matthew Gissing, Director, Eastern Hose
Richard Miller, Managing Director, Proeon
Terry Baxter, CEO, Inspire Suffolk
Emma Ratzer, CEO, Access Community Trust
Declan Foy, Sizewell Branch Secretary, Unite the Union
Nikos Savvas, Principal, West Suffolk College
Viv Gillespie, Principal, Suffolk New College
Helen Langton, Vice-Chancellor, University of Suffolk
Stuart Rimmer, Principal and CEO, East Coast College
Daniel Mayhew, Headteacher, Alde Valley Academy
Jane Wood, Executive Director, WS Training Ltd
Philip Hurst, Headteacher, Thomas Mills, Framlingham
Roger Fern, Chair of Governors, Suffolk New College
With reference to the letter, Humphrey Cadoux-Hudson, Managing Director, Sizewell C, said: “Sizewell C will be good for Suffolk, it will deliver jobs, skills, training and an economic boost to the area. This is acknowledged in the letter of support signed by business and education leaders across the county and East Anglia. I recognise that while these benefits are welcome they cannot come at any cost. Suffolk County Council and East Suffolk Council want to see improvements to our proposals, particularly on our transport and environment plans. I can assure both local authorities that we want to work with them to look at the different options available and identify and deliver these improvements so they can make the most of this opportunity for Suffolk.”