Research carried out with Airbus UK at Broughton by Flintshire County Council indicates that each job created by the investment zone would likely support multiple jobs elsewhere in Flintshire through supply chain and support businesses. That investment could bring around £1bn to the North East Wales economy.
Discussing plans for the £160m investment zone across Flintshire and Wrexham in a meeting last week, Flintshire People’s Voice councillor Alasdair Ibbotson suggested that the idea would not benefit local workers and would harm small businesses in Flintshire.
“There is no mention of improved wages and no mention of improved working conditions for working people in Flintshire,” Cllr Ibbotson told Flintshire County Council’s Corporate Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee. “There are significant tax handouts for businesses.
“Who benefits? Flintshire has an employment rate far below the Wales average and even further below the UK average. Who is going to fill these jobs?
“The kind of companies who are going here at those who are happy to move around when there’s tax incentives. They will disappear as soon as those tax incentives disappear.
“Small local businesses who make up the core of the local economy will suffer if we pass this. Big multinationals, owned by millionaires and billionaires who do not live in Flintshire, will benefit.”
But at cabinet this week chief planning officer Andrew Farrow said that research carried out by the council showed that the impact of major business investment in manufacturing actually delivers amplified benefits to the area.
“When Covid was kicking in and there were concerns about Airbus and the impact if they left, there was some work done around the multiplier effect,” he said.
“The multiplier effect for one job at Airbus was seven to eight jobs within the local supply chain, so it’s quite a significant impact.
“I think the critical thing is how large employers procure their labour. We visited JCB on Wrexham Industrial Estate for a ministerial visit about eight months ago. One thing they wanted to stress was that they use the local supply chain.
“The example they used was their transport provider. They were really clear that they wanted to use a local transport contractor to do it and they’ve been doing it for years.
“JCB are trucking materials all over the place, quite often between their plant and the plant in Derby. It does seem embedded within these larger companies that they will use the local supply chain and we need to drive that out through this investment.”
Read more: Councillor claims 6,000 new jobs ‘would not benefit local people’
The Investment Zone Tax Sites will be based across three areas – The Deeside Gateway – comprising the Airfields and other former RAF Sealand land around Deeside Industrial Park, Wrexham Industrial Estate and Warren Hall near Broughton – which is strategic land currently owned by the Welsh Government.
Businesses within the zone will gain benefits including:
-
Five-year relief from business rates to support new business growth.
-
Full Stamp Duty Land Tax relief for land and buildings bought or developed for commercial purposes.
-
Zero-rate employer National Insurance contributions on earnings up to £25,000 for new employees (working within the Investment Zone for 60% of their time) for three years.
-
Enhanced 100% Capital Allowance for plant and machinery purchases.
-
Accelerated relief to allow businesses to reduce taxable profits by 10% of the cost of investment per year, relieving 100% of the cost of structures and buildings over 10 years.
Flintshire and Wrexham Councils will be able to retain 50% of business rates generated at Deeside and Wrexham Industrial Park over 10 years for reinvestment.
Cllr Chris Dolphin, Cabinet Member for Economy, Environment and Climate, said: “There’s a lot of detail with this proposal. It’s very exciting for Flintshire and Wales.
“As a councillor, if you’re not in favour of this type of thing, investment zones, you may as well just pack up and go home. We’re here for this sort of thing. It’s massive.
“We’re talking about a huge project that is wonderful for this area.”
Flintshire cabinet members approved the proposed tax sites, governance model and investment zone themes, paving the way for the project to move forward.