By Bethany Ruby Rose-
International Trade Secretary, Liam Fox, has launched the Department for International Trade’s first ever space exports campaign to target export opportunities in the US and India.
The ‘Space Exports’ campaign will see two of the world’s fastest growing markets targeted with trade missions, led by newly appointed Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner Antony Philipson. In India the Department for International Trade (DIT) will also increase its operation by recruiting British space sector experts to work in market.
Optimism about the campaign’s success rests on the fact 40% of the entire globe’s small satellites are built in the UK, highlighting the huge capability in country. The International Trade Secretary plans to utilise opportunities he believes Brexit will present to make the most of global engagement with a sector that is growing 15 times faster than the rest of the UK economy. Brexit talks so far between the Uk and the EU have been very challenging, but pro Brexitiers have other r outlooks on the situation that leads them to believe things will be alright in the end.
The UK space industry’s growth has accelerated at a fast pace, doubling in size since 2010, with exports growing to £5 billion in 2014/15, or 36.4% of total income. The campaign has an expansive aim in increasing the number of nations using the specialist products British businesses produce ahead of the UK’s departure from the EU.
International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox MP, said:
”Our space industry is thriving as years of strong growth has seen the UK secure its reputation as a leading space nation.
To sustain this, we need to be reaching new markets with huge potential like India and the USA. As an international economic department, we’ll achieve this through our new space exports programme, which will help meet the ambition of both government and industry to see space exports reach £40 billion by 2030.
With over a third of its business coming through overseas sales, the space sector is a great example of the benefits of seizing global opportunities which in turn create jobs back home.
Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner to North America, Antony Phillipson, said:
The space sector in the US presents tremendous opportunities for high-quality British goods and services. We are both nations with a rich heritage in space technology.
Through the UK government’s extensive and expert trade and investment network, British business will be well-placed to make a major contributions to jobs, just as US firms will be in the UK. Together we can boost jobs and economic growth in both countries”.
Graham Peters, Chair of UK Space said:
The UK has a proud history of leveraging its space expertise to become a leader in commercial aspects of space. We are delighted to be working with government to promote UK capabilities overseas to underpin the continued growth of the sector.
Dr Jaime Reed Industry Co-Chair of the Space Growth Partnership’s Space Exports Group said:
Industry and DIT have been working closely to build a solid evidence base demonstrating the potential for significant new UK business in major global markets. It’s fantastic to see the government committing to growth through these new announcements. The Uk government is engaging with the sector to determine how best to create a sector deal with them that drives forward the modern Industrial Strategy. Low cost access to space is an important part of this, and there have been significant steps taken this week to enable small satellite launch from UK soil for the first time.