Since the financial crisis, businesses have had to restructure their balance sheets, and for those wishing to export goods and services, the support offered by government has never been better, reflecting the new and emerging market places open to British business.
UK Trade & Investment supported 32,000 businesses to export in 2012-13 and are on track to support at least 40,000 in 2013-14. In addition, £4.3bn worth of financial support for British exports was supplied through UK Export Finance in 2012-13, the highest in 12 years.[1] These figures, in addition to the numerous trade missions led by the Prime Minister and the Chancellor, stress the importance government is placing on overseas trade.
Richard and his colleague, Alok Sharma, the Member of Parliament for Reading West, are therefore jointly hosting a timely seminar, Boosting Exports, Unlocking Growth, aimed at firms which are exploring the opportunity to export for the first time, as well as those looking to grow their exports.
Richard said; “The economy is on the road to recovery, but we as politicians have a duty to enable our fantastic firms to reach their potential and compete in the global race. I would strongly urge local firms with an interest in exporting goods and services to join me and debate issues with renowned business personnel and UKTI officials.”
The seminar is free to all attendees and has the full support of Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (TVB LEP) and the UKTI, who are also sponsoring the event. The details are listed below.
Details of the Seminar on “Boosting Exports, Unlocking Growth” are as follows:
Date: Friday 31st January 2014, Time: 07:30am – 10:00am
Location: The Conference Centre, 100 Longwater Avenue, Green Park, Reading, RG2 6GP
Programme:
07.30 - 07.50: Registration, tea and coffee
07.50 - 07.55: Welcome from Alok Sharma MP and Richard Benyon MP
07.55 - 08.05: Tim Smith, Business Director for Thames Valley Berkshire LEP
08.05 - 08.15: Rob Lewtas, Strategic Partnerships Manager, UKTI
08.15 - 08.30: Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline
08.30 - 09.20: Small Business Case Studies
09.20 - 10.00 Q&A, Plenary and Networking
Spaces are limited, so if you are interested in attending, I would be grateful if you could RSVP to Jennifer Ruddick by email on [email protected] or phone on 020 7219 7131.
[1] The Autumn Statement 2013. p. 43.