Member News
7th December 2011As the first year of the Dods UK Manufacturing Dialogue comes to a close, a cross-party selection of parliamentarians joined experts from the manufacturing industry last night to explore key issues affecting the sector and to launch the Manufacturing a Greater Britain report.
The report, the culmination of a year-long collaborative research project, highlights 'five recommendations for change' which will help boost the sector and increase its power to grow the UK economy.
A key finding of the Dialogue, initiated in December 2010, has been the need for a political culture of optimism amongst those with the power to improve the sector’s image.
The report also argues that the rigour of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects in schools and colleges needs to be improved, arguing that this will "play a decisive role in the future workforce's ability to compete internationally."
Speaking at the launch, Nigel Dove, head of development and marketing at the Manufacturing Institute, said: "Politicians do want to hear about manufacturing and the Dialogue serves as a very valuable exercise to assist parliamentarians in finding out more about manufacturing within the UK.
"Looking to the next few months and years, a key challenge for the Dialogue, and the industry as a whole, is to develop a cross-departmental strategy for manufacturing that spans across government after government."
Alberto de Benedictis, chief executive of Finmeccanica, added "the importance of promoting British manufacturing has been propelled forward by circumstances in the marketplace and the worrying economic situation that the nation, and indeed the world, is suffering from… The Dialogue has proved very useful in promoting the work of British manufacturers to MPs of all political persuasions."
The reception marked the culmination of a series of events throughout the year, including summits in Cardiff and Burnley, and a fringe event at each of the three major party conferences, aimed at showcasing the best of British manufacturing from global business to local enterprise.
The Dods UK Manufacturing Dialogue is sponsored by Barclays Corporate, Boeing, British Pharmaceutical Group (AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline), Confederation of Paper Industries, Finmeccanica, Food and Drink Federation, General Motors, Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Manufacturing Institute.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd