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news opinion


Employment levels are rising markedly with almost one in five companies in the South East hiring additional workers since the New Year


The increased staffing levels are necessary because order books are growing significantly with a large number of companies in the region reporting a backlog of work.


Efforts to shift this backlog will presumably lead to further rises in employment levels in the months ahead. Very good news indeed.


In some areas, such as Oxfordshire, there is almost full employment. There is a sense of excitement and anticipation in this county as a number of government initiatives, plus some private-sector support, have fuelled recent growth, with much more to come.


As an example, Oxfordshire’s City Deal will see four innovation hubs being built, creating 19,000 high- level jobs in science and technology, plus the added benefit of 31,400 construction jobs.


In Hampshire, the Solent LEP has a £2.4 billion strategic economic plan, called Transforming the Solent, with the marine and maritime sector a key target for investment.


There is a £1.4b investment plan up the M3 too. The Enterprise M3 LEP, which covers the northern end of the county plus parts of Surrey, is forming a public-private alliance to drive prosperity in the M3 corridor.


And in the Thames Valley, the strategic plan being submitted to government is aimed at delivering growth right through to 2021. The LEP believes that conservatively its plans will deliver an uplift in economic output (Gross Value Added) of some £700 million in 2020.


Altogether, the LEPs are doing good work. And the benefits to our economy are starting to become visible.


David Murray Publisher


www.businessmag.co.uk


Hampshire – European region of the future


Hampshire has been recognised as one of the most promising investment locations in Europe according to an international study carried out by fDi Intelligence, a division of the Financial Times.


The county was commended for having particular strengths in terms of ’business friendliness’ and ’Foreign Direct Investment strategy’ in the annual fDi European Cities and Regions of the Future 2014/15 rankings.


The categories in which Hampshire was recognised were: • Top 25 European regions overall • Top 10 Small European Regions – fDi Strategy


• Top 10 Small European Regions – Business Friendliness.


Significant recent investment being made by overseas-owned companies across Hampshire, that strengthen the county’s credential as a successful and prosperous business location, include: • US-owned GE Aviation’s plans to expand its aircraft component plant in Hamble;


• German supermarket chain Lidl investing in a major distribution facility, creating 400


jobs in Nursling, Southampton;


• Kuehne & Nagel, the Swiss logistics company, locating its south coast drinks operation in Eastleigh;


• French mobile device insurance company SPB moving its new UK headquarters into Portsmouth.


These are just some of the companies demonstrating confidence in Hampshire as a ’region of the future’.


“We are delighted to see Hampshire recognised as both a region with a clear strategy for attracting and retaining inward investment, and at the same time being business friendly,“ commented councillor Seán Woodward, executive member for economy, transport & environment, Hampshire County Council.


This accolade for Hampshire comes hot on the heels of Southampton being ranked no4 in PwC’s ’Good Growth for Cities’ report published in November 2013, and Rushmoor and Hart being ranked second and third in KPMG’s ’Tech Monitor’ report tracking the employment and growth prospects of UK technology clusters.


CTC Aviation expands Diamond Fleet


World-leading airline pilot training company, CTC Aviation based in Southampton has announced that it will equip its newest flight training centre in Phoenix, Arizona in the United States, with a fleet of brand new, Garmin1000 glass cockpit-equipped, Diamond Aircraft with Austro engines.


@TheBusinessMag Business THE M A GA ZINE TM


This investment in state-of-the-art technology will see the Solent-based company’s international training fleet grow to a total of 56 aircraft distributed between the company’s Crew Training Centres across the UK, New Zealand and the USA.


In the May 2014 issue of The Business Magazine


• Education & Business • Summer Hospitality • Focus on Winchester


Details: 0118-9766410 sales@elcot.co.uk


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – APRIL 2014


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