Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced in the Budget delivered in March plans for 12 new investment zones, saying there would be at least one in Northern Ireland. Speaking in the Commons, Tory former Cabinet minister Dame Andrea Leadsom asked: “What consideration has (the Secretary of State) given to creating an investment zone that covers the whole of Northern Ireland that would bring much-needed investment to that much-loved part of the United Kingdom?”Ms Badenoch responded: “I think this is a… very interesting idea. I do know that the investment zone policy is owned by the levelling up department, so I will raise it with the Secretary of State there and with the Northern Ireland Secretary of State. Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said she would raise the idea with ministers in the Northern Ireland Office and Department for Levelling Up (PA)“But what I think I must say is that officials from the UK Government and the Northern Ireland civil service continue to work closely to explore developing investment zone policy in the country. “The lack of a functioning executive there has of course limited the scope, and the nature of engagement on investment zones, but if the executive is restored we will work together to progress an investment zone at pace.

Source: The Herald September 14, 2023 10:36 UTC