Freeport East has finally won government backing - bringing £25million of funding and hopes of creating up to 13,500 new jobs in Suffolk and north Essex.
The announcement by the government's Department of Levelling Up will bring the £25m of "seed funding" over the next few years - but should also allow the freeport to retain business rates and get tax relief worth hundreds of millions of pounds.
Freeport East covers an area within roughly 28 miles of the ports of Felixstowe and Harwich, stretching from Woodbridge in the north, to Stowmarket in the west and Jaywick Sands in the south. Colchester and Ipswich are both key parts of the Freeport economic area.
Welcoming the news, Steve Beel, chief executive of Freeport East, said: “This is a major milestone for Freeport East and the result of a great deal of hard work from all our partner organisations.
"Freeport East is a locally-led initiative but has global connections and ambition.
“Bringing together key stakeholders including local government, the private sector, and educational institutions we will attract new investment to create a hotbed for trade, innovation and green energy driving growth in both the regional and national economies.
“We will look to partner and collaborate with all organisations interested in the economic success of the region and encourage parties to get in touch with us directly.”
Freeport East was given the go-ahead by the government along with another in the Liverpool City Region - the first three were given the green light last December.
Supporters say they are good at generating high-quality jobs in an area although critics say the zones encourage employers to move to where tax rates and regulations are easier than elsewhere - and can just lead to jobs being moved from one place to another.
FreeportEast has three main development sites at the Port of Felixstowe, Harwich International Port and Gateway 14 near Stowmarket.
It will be able to collect and distribute all the business rates growth generated on these sites for the next 25 years, providing millions of pounds of financial backing to invest in regeneration, skills and innovation across the local area.
Work has already started on the Gateway 14 development and there are ambitious plans to create a green energy hub in Harwich to serve sectors including offshore wind.
All the developments have an emphasis on supporting innovation, skills development and net zero as well as acting as anchors for wider economic impact.
The Universities of Essex and Suffolk, as well as a range of other partners in the region, have committed to working with Freeport East and its businesses to accelerate innovation across operations, products and services.
Levelling Up minister Dehenna Davison said: “Today is a historic day for many port towns and coastal communities across East Anglia, as Freeport East takes flight.
“This Freeport is going to give local economies a massive boost, unlock a new state-of-the-art business space and create tens of thousands of highly skilled jobs.
“We are maximising the opportunities of leaving the European Union to drive growth and throw our doors open to trade with the world.”
Local politicians have also been campaigning to get the final go-ahead for the creation of Freeport East.
Dr Therese Coffey, whose Suffolk Coastal constituency includes Felixstowe, said: “This will mean thousands of highly skilled jobs and Freeport East could become a world-leading centre for clean energy production propelling the UK’s net zero decarbonisation efforts.“
And Ipswich MP Tom Hunt added: “It’s great news today that the Freeport East project at Felixstowe and Harwich has got final approval from the Government and will be the fourth freeport fully up and running.
“This announcement will really put our local area on the map and help us deliver for the national economy, connecting the North and Midlands to global trade.
"Giving freeport status to Felixstowe and Harwich is projected to boost UK trade by £12 billion a year, and create £5.5 billion in new gross value added over 10 years.”
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