THE Port of Tilbury, London’s major port, today (2 February 2015) welcomed the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rt Hon Ed Balls MP, and Polly Billington, the Labour candidate for Thurrock.
The Shadow Chancellor and Ms Billington were briefed on the key role Tilbury plays in the local and national economy and the significant investments being made at the port by the port and its tenants, that will this year (2015), amounts to over £75million, creating over 300 long term jobs as well as a number of short term construction jobs.
The party were taken on a tour of operations to see for themselves the outcome of the multimillion pound investment across the port including London Container Terminal, one of the UK’s largest container terminals which together with the rest of the port handles over half a million containers each year. Mr Balls and Ms Billington were also updated on The London Construction Link alliance between S Walsh and the port which offers construction solutions using water transportation for sites near or beside the Thames to relieve truck congestion on the Capital’s roads.
There was also an update on the newly launched London Paper Terminal, which handles over 400,000 tonnes of paper products each year; and the new 70-acre distribution park on the outskirts of the port called the London Distribution Park which has begun construction of its first 110,000 sq.ft. bespoke warehouse. The park is the largest speculative development on the market near London and is expected to bring over 1,100 new jobs to the Thames Gateway area.
An overview was also given of the historic grade II listed London Cruise Terminal which is well underway with the upgrade of its passenger terminal facilities and the landing stage. The cruise business is an important tourism driver for the south east and welcomes over 50 cruise liners each year and over 50,000 passengers.
Mr Balls and Ms Billington also took time during the visit to meet with port staff, including apprentices and trainees, and union representatives.
Rt Hon Ed Balls MP, Shadow Chancellor, said: "Tilbury is London’s engine, supporting Britain’s economic growth. The port is the UK’s gateway to Europe. Our relationship with Europe is an important factor in ensuring the port thrives. The new investment in Tilbury Port will have a positive impact on the local economy, by boosting the number of skilled jobs and apprenticeships."
Polly Billington, Labour Candidate for Thurrock, said: “The Port of Tilbury has shown enormous resilience in the face of the global financial crisis and increased competition. To prepare for the future changes in the industry, employers like the Port will need to continue to help develop the skills of the local workforce. Skilled secure jobs are essential to the economic success of our community, and they should be available and advertised for local people. It is good to see skilled jobs being created at the port with the prospect of more in the future. Let’s make sure local people have the chance to fill those posts.”
Commenting on the visit, Perry Glading, Chief Operating Officer at Forth Ports (owners of the Port of Tilbury), said: “Today was a great opportunity for Tilbury to showcase the port’s pivotal role in supporting the UK economy, from supplying construction materials for housing schemes across the South East and large infrastructure projects like Crossrail to supporting the drive to improve recycling rates with the largest sorting and export facility in Britain.
"Key to the Port’s strength is the continuous investment in our assets across the port estate. I was delighted that our staff, who are integral to that investment programme, were able to meet the Shadow Chancellor today. Having a skilled workforce is key to delivering the service level our customers expect from a major port. We are an important employer in the area with over 800 people directly employed at the port and we contribute to the local economy with over 8000 jobs depending on us to continue to be successful.”
The Port was one of the first organisations to launch the Government’s new traineeship programme and supports the National Apprenticeship Service. The Port’s team is working with the Government to help design a funding model which will work through HMRC systems to route apprenticeship funding direct to employers in the future (Apprenticeship Reform Roundtable). In the last two years the Port has taken on 30 apprentices (5% of the workforce) with imminent plans to take on a further 15.
