UK Reindustrialisation Minister, Blair McDougall visits ADS, Airbus and Safran in Toulouse

In his first international visit as the UK’s Minister for Reindustrialisation, Blair McDougall visited the French headquarters of ADS – the leading trade body for the aerospace sector – in Toulouse, to boost UK-France aerospace collaboration and investment opportunities and champion the UK aerospace industry.

The Minister met senior leaders from Airbus and Safran to discuss future investment, aerospace innovation and opportunities to expand high-value manufacturing activity in the UK.

Airbus alone supports around 15,000 UK jobs across 27 sites, spends £3.9bn with more than 2,300 UK suppliers, and is ramping up production to meet growing global demand.

The Minister visited Airbus’s A350 Final Assembly Line, where UK-designed and assembled wings are integrated into aircraft destined for customers around the world, showcasing one of the key capabilities the UK brings to the global aerospace sector.

The Minister also visited Safran, now the UK’s third-largest civil aerospace company, to discuss its ambitions to further expand its UK footprint.

This included investment in the next generation of aerospace technologies and manufacturing capability, and how this can align with the Government’s reindustrialisation ambitions.

At an industry roundtable with UK aerospace SMEs, the Minister heard directly from businesses on growth opportunities and barriers to expansion, reinforcing the Government’s commitment to helping British firms secure a greater share of global aerospace supply chains.

• Speaking at ADS Toulouse, Minister McDougall underlined the importance of aerospace to the UK economy and set out the Government’s support for innovation and advanced manufacturing.
• The Minister highlighted how closer UK-France industrial collaboration can help secure the next generation of aerospace investment, exports and high-skilled jobs for the UK.

Reindustrialisation Minister Blair McDougall said:

“Our aerospace sector is world-leading, and today’s visit was an opportunity to see its strength first-hand – from the wings designed and assembled in the UK that are fitted to Airbus aircraft in Toulouse, to the British suppliers helping deliver some of the world’s most advanced aerospace programmes.

“The aerospace industry is central to our mission to reindustrialise Britain, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs in every corner of the country, and we’re backing it to soar by working with business attract investment, strengthening supply chains and helping British firms win a greater share of future aerospace programmes.”