London Gatwick Airport’s (LGW) strong revival is critical to the region’s economic recovery and will help to create the dynamic, connected and innovative business environment that is necessary to diversify the region's economy, according to a new report -
Diversifying the region's economy and making it more resilient has become an important objective for several local economic partners following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new report by Lichfields outlines that a revived
In response,
- Grow its workforce and, by reviving the airport, support more jobs across the region than ever before
- Provide labour market entry points for young people, including through apprenticeships and graduate programmes, and facilitate training in response to technological innovation in aviation and associated sectors
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Promote a clean, green recovery by building on commitments to reach net zero for the airport's own operations and through involvement in
UK industry plans to reach net zero aircraft emissions by 2050 - Ensure the airport's procurement and supply chain spending targets businesses based in the region.
“As an airport, we plan to maximise the benefits that we provide for local people, communities and businesses through a range of initiatives that focus on skills, employment, sustainability and our extensive supply chains, which support many thousands of jobs across the South East,” he added.
Wingate concluded: “We will also continue to work closely with our partners on their ambitious plans to diversify the region's economy. Many established businesses tell us that the airport was an important factor in their decision to locate in this region. We want to build on that by making sure that the area is once again an attractive, innovative and well-connected place to invest and locate a business.”
A further new report - The Economic Impact of
The research also demonstrates that the airport could generate up to £8.4 billion for the region's economy by 2028 - compared to £4.1 billion GVA in 2020. Put another way, the airport would support economic activity that could generate enough tax receipts to provide over 220,000 primary school places or over 70,000 nurses across West and
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