UK woos major investors at international summit as DP World confirms £1bn investment following P&O Ferries row – business live

Naomi Smith, chief executive of campaign group Best for Britain, hopes that Keir Starmer’s war on bureaucracy will address some of the hurdles created by Brexit, saying:

“Cutting red tape must include the mountain that Brexit has created for almost every part of the UK economy but particularly SMEs, touring performers and export/import businesses.

“Beneficial alignment with our largest market in areas like food standards and carbon taxes will reduce costs for businesses and consumers, give confidence to investors and boost growth.”

Major CEOs and investors arriving at Guildhall are being whisked through the front door, with umbrella carriers protecting them from the London weather (it’s pretty wet today, again).

Journalists, though, are being let in through the loading bay entrance, points out The Sun’s Ashley Armstrong:

Logistics giant DP World has confirmed that it will invest £1bn to expand its London Gateway container port, after the row with transport secretary Louise Haigh was defused by Downing Street.

The expansion, announced at today’s investment summit, will turn London Gateway, on the banks of the Thames in Essex, into Britain’s “largest container port within five years”, DP World says.

The plan is to build two new shipping berths, taking the total to six berths, all large enough for the world’s biggest container ships. This will expand the quayside at London Gateway to more than 2.5km in length.

The site will also get a second rail terminal added to handle the expected increase in containerised trade.

The pledge follows the frantic effort by ministers and diplomats to repair relations with DP World, after Haigh called its P&O Ferries division a “rogue operator” when announcing new workers’ protections this week.

DP World say the expansion will create a further 400 permanent new jobs, on top of the 1,20 workers already employed at the former oil refinery. It points out, though, that the expansion is subject to planning approval and regulatory requirements,

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, chairman and chief executive officer at DP World, says:

“DP World London Gateway will help make Britain’s trade flow in the future by connecting domestic exporters with global markets and delivering vital supply chain resilience for the whole economy.

I am proud of this major investment which underlines DP World’s long-term commitment to the UK.”

Photos of a meeting at the investment summit have landed.

They show global co-chief investment officer of Blackstone Lionel Assant, and Ruth Porat, the chief investment officer of Google, with Porat alongside Keir Starmer:

Q: Most investors will tell you, in private, that the biggest barrier for the UK is being outside the single market. Wouldn’t rejoining the single market be the brave thing to do?

Peter Kyle argues that the UK and Europe have to look to the future, and explore their potential as two seperate territories.

There are lots of opportunities, and barriers, that weren’t around in 2016, Kyle says, adding:

We’re looking at a trade deal that explores all the opportunities going forward.

Kyle then explains how he visited Seattle in February this year, pitching Labour’s plans to the head of Amazon Web Services.

That led to AWS’s announcement of £8bn investment in Britain last month, he says:

And on Elon Musk’s non-appearance at the summit, Kyle doesn’t explicitely say whether the Tesla/SpaceX chief was ever invited or not, before the row over his critical tweets this summer.

Kyle says the government would “love to engage” with Musk, when he has an open investment programme to compete for.

Q: Won’t some traditional Labour supporters be a little bit unnerved by the government speaking the language of the Tories – slashing red tape, getting rid of bureaucracy, getting into bed with big business?

Kyle argues everyone should celebrate that if you create a new innovation in this country it will create wealth and jobs.

Q: Why did the PM tick off one of his own ministers [transport secretary Louise Haigh] for a Number 10-approved press release [which labelled P&O a “rogue employer”]

Kyle points out that the Today Programme, and everyone else, criticised what P&O did in 2022 [it sacked its staff without notice, and replaced them with cheaper agency workers].

P&O and its owner DP World have now signed up to the government’s new workers’ rights legislation, he says, echoing his earlier point that DP World and the UK have both turned a corner.

Q: Are you so keen at the top of the Labour Party to get close to big business that you’ll ditch your own cabinet ministers’ words?

Kyle says the government is keen to show you can raise standards and attract innovation – he argues that this is happening, with DP World sticking to its £1bn investment plan (which looked shaky last week).

Q: The boss of [US pharmaceuticals firm] Eli Lily has argued that a small market, such as the UK, must be willing to regulate less than the EU to make it attractive for investors to come here. Is that the plan?

Kyle argues that the key is to regulate “smartly” and “creatively”, going back to his point about wanting to help companies get through the regulatory process without cutting corners….

Peter Kyle is now on the Today programme, for a pre-investment summit grilling, where he denies that Keir Starmer’s war on red tape will lead to cutting corners.

Q: What bureaucracy will the government ‘rip out’’?

Kyle gives the example of the Regulatory Innovation Office which he announced last week.

That Office takes the learnings from Covid vaccine taskforce, to speed up deployment of innovations faster in normal times, Kyle says.

He explains that currently, it can take up to three years for a new product to get through the regulatory minefield, before it can be made available.

Kyle adds:

Not cutting corners or lowering standards, but making sure that the government takes on some of the burden of compliance, so that our nation can benefit.

Q: What if the NHS wants to hold the price of an innovative drug down, or doesn’t want to deploy a new development, anti-obesity drugs for example.

Are you willing to get rid of that red tape in order to allow big US pharma giants to push their drugs into the health service quicker?

“We are,” Kyle replies.

He points out that for the first time ever, health secretary Wes Streeting has taken responsibility for spreading innovation through the NHS.

More highlights from Peter Kyle’s morning media round:

Peter Kyle has also argued that P&O and the UK have both “turned a corner”, following the row between transport minister Louise Haigh and parent company DP World.

Asked by Times Radio about the clash, the technology and innovation secretary argued that both sides were ‘looking to the future’:

“Like your listeners, I was angry with the way P&O acted back then.

“But, actually, P&O has changed because last week we introduced workers’ rights legislation which would stop that kind of thing happening again and P&O were right there, right behind it.

“DP World, their parent company, were right behind it. They will be here today and they are continuing their £1bn investment.

“That means we’ve all turned a corner. They’ve turned a corner, our country has turned a corner and we are looking to the future.”

Haigh’s criticism of P&O was well-founded, though. After sacking 800 workers in 2022, the ferry operator paid some crew members less than half the UK minimum wage, the Guardian reported in March this year. Some agency workers received as little as £4.87 an hour.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, will not be at today’s summit.

It emerged last month that Musk would not be invited, following his controversial social media posts during last month’s riots.

Peter Kyle, the UK’s Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, has defended Musk’s non-appearance.

He told Sky News this morning that Elon Musk had not attended any investment summits under the previous government either.

Q: So it’s not because he calls the prime minister ‘two-tier Keir’?

Kyle denies it, saying:

Absolutely not. Our PM puts country first, party second, he’s said that numerous times.

Kyle says the summit is focused on companies who are already actively looking to make investment around the world, engaging with them and getting them here.

He says £40tn of global assets are represented in London, looking for places to invest their money; the government wants to showcase the country and win investment.

The first ministers from the British nations are all expected to attend the investment summit, as well as many regional mayors.

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, will be there, and says:

“I’m delighted to be attending the International Investment Summit. With a new government, we are reclaiming Britain’s reputation as a magnet for global investment - bringing with it new technology, new ways of thinking and, crucially, new jobs across our country, meaning higher living standards.

“London and the UK are open for business, trade and investment. I will continue working with the Government to forge new partnerships, reset relationships and seize the opportunity to secure long-term investment so that we can build a better London for everyone and deliver the change Britain needs.”

The former England football manager and keen Labour supporter Gareth Southgate is expected at the investment summit today.

Southgate will join actor and director Adjoa Andoh, Lucian Grainge, the chief executive of Universal Music Group, the company behind artists including Lady Gaga and Lana Del Rey, and an executive from Netflix on a panel exploring investment opportunities in the UK’s creative scene.

More here:

Labour have received a boost ahead of today’s investment summit, with 14 top business leaders declaring that Britain has a “very real opportunity” to grow its economy.

Senior executives from some of the world’s largest investors, including Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Aviva, Fidelity and Legal and General, have signed a letter declaring they are “optimistic” about Britain’s economic future.

They cite Britain’s traditional strengths – education, the legal system, the City and the English language – before pointing out that “greater stability” makes the country even more attractive to invest in.

The letter says:

Sir, As global investors, we believe that there is a very real opportunity for the UK to grow its economy by attracting international investment. Britain’s educational establishments, legal system, financial services sector and language form the bedrock of a strong investment proposition.

Technological developments, advances in the energy system and greater freedom in capital flows have further enhanced Britain’s position.

With greater stability, its attractiveness is increased even further. We are optimistic about the future of the economy, and believe it is time to invest in Britain.

It’s been signed by: Amanda Blanc, Aviva; Anne Richards, Fidelity International; António Simões, Legal and General; Beatriz Martin Jimenez, UBS; Bernard Mensah, Bank of America; Bill McDermott, ServiceNow; Cath Bowtell, IFM Investors; David M Solomon, Goldman Sachs; Dr Markus Krebber, RWE AG; Filippo Gori, JP Morgan; Jonathan D Gray, Blackstone; Philipp Freise, KKR; Steve Rigby, Rigby Group; and Viswas Raghavan, Citi.

Their point about ‘stability’ will be welcomed by Starmer, who is expected to argue today that stability leads to growth, and that growth leads to stability.

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.

Sir Keir Starmer will pledge today to scrap regulation that holds back company investment, as the UK welcomes major business leaders and investors to the new government’s first international investment summit.

Today’s summit will see Labour pitching the UK as a place where economic stability has been restored, creating the right conditions for growth and investment.

Starmer will address CEOs and investors at London’s Guildhall this morning, and vow to do “everything in my power to galvanise growth”. He’ll pledge to end the “chop and change” that has riddled Britain in recent years, deterring investment.

And on the issue of regulation, the PM is expected to promise to look at rules that “needlessly” hold back the investment the country needs, by saying:

“Where it is stopping us building the homes, the data centres, warehouses, grid connectors, roads, trainlines, you name it then mark my words – we will get rid of it.

“We will rip out the bureaucracy that blocks investment and we will make sure that every regulator in this country take growth as seriously as this room does.”

One person’s needless red tape is another’s vital standards, though, and there are fears that cutting regulation could be unsafe.

One union source has likened Starmer’s words to former PM David Cameron’s “bonfire of red tape”, telling us:

“The coalition also had a massive shake-up of red tape, and ended up taking out loads of safety regulations.”

About 200 senior executives are signed up to participate in the summit, as well as a string of cabinet ministers, including Starmer and his chancellor, Rachel Reeves.

The government’s argues that securing new investment from major companies will help it deliver economic growth, create jobs, lift living standards, and make communities and families across the country better off.

It says ministers set to unveil billions worth of major investment deals in AI, life sciences and infrastructure.

According to the Financial Times, Starmer will unveil commitments from the private sector to invest more than £50bn into the economy. Last week, the leaders of the world’s biggest green energy companies got the ball rolling by pledging more than £24bn of new private investment.

The build-up to the summit was marred, though, by the row with Dubai-based ports company DP World, after Louise Haigh, transport secretary, called its P&O Ferries division a “rogue operator” due to its sacking of 800 employees without notice in 2022.

The government rowed back, after DP World threatened to pause a £1bn investment in its London Gateway port, with business secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Starmer placating the company, so the company’s executives should now be attending.

After Starmer gives his speech, he’ll hold a conversation with the former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, “moderated” by Emma Walmsley, the chief executive of pharmaceutical firm GSK.

Other panels will involve the chief investment officer of Google owner Alphabet, the chair of investment firm BlackRock, Larry Fink, and Amanda Blanc, the boss of insurance group Aviva.

The agenda

• 10am BST: UK international investment summit opens

• 10.05am BST: Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer gives keynote speech, followed by an “in conversation” event with former CEO and chairman of Google Eric Schmidt.

• 11am BST: Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel is awarded in Stockholm

• 11.20am BST: Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy hosts a panel on the creative industries

• 4.20pm BST: Chancellor Rachel Reeves gives closing speech at the investment summit

• Evening: An investment summit reception at St Paul’s Cathedral attended by His Majesty The King.