Japan to invest nearly £18bn in the UK | Political news

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Rishi Sunak is visiting the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, where he will discuss with other nations ways to stimulate economic development. Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific region will also be on the agenda.

The UK will benefit from nearly £18bn of additional private investment from Japan, Rishi Sunak announced during a visit to the nation for the G7 summit.

Speaking from Tokyo, the prime minister said the pledges are a “huge vote of confidence” in the British economy and “will create hundreds of well-paying jobs.”

While he painted an optimistic picture for national finances, he acknowledged “concerns” within the automobile industry following warnings of an “existential threat” posed by the looming Brexit trade deal deadline, and revealed that it is in talks with the EU about how to address them.

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Speaking to broadcasters aboard the aircraft carrier JS Izumo, Sunak said: “It’s something that car manufacturers across Europe, not just the UK, have raised as a concern.

“And as a result of that, we are engaged in a dialogue with the EU on how we can address those concerns when it comes to auto manufacturing in general.”

It comes ahead of the prime minister hosting a business chiefs reception in the Japanese capital on Thursday, seeking to foster closer ties.

He expects to meet the heads of Nissan, Toshiba and the Mitsubishi Estate, as well as representatives of British firms Octopus Energy and Mott MacDonald.

Nissan has issued advisories on the costs of manufacturing electric cars at its Sunderland plant due to high energy costs and inflation.

Vauxhall’s parent company Stellantis said on Tuesday it will not be able to keep a commitment to make electric vehicles in the UK without changes to the EU trade deal as the tariff deadline approaches.

In concerns over UK battery manufacturing capacitySunak said: “Nissan has invested a billion pounds in battery manufacturing capacity in the North East.

“I will speak to the CEO of Nissan and other Japanese business leaders later about investing in the UK.”

Downing Street said the £17.7bn of new investment in UK businesses and projects will create highly-skilled jobs and boost innovation.

The investment will come from real estate companies such as Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan, the Marubeni trading house and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

Trading house Marubeni intends to sign off on plans that see around £10bn spent in the UK to boost green and offshore wind projects in Wales and Scotland, Number 10 said.

A £4bn expansion of UK offshore wind projects off Suffolk and Norfolk by the Sumitomo Corporation was also billed.

UK-based companies like Octopus Energy and Mott MacDonald will pay back the other way.

“These new investments are a huge vote of confidence in the dynamic UK economy, from some of Japan’s leading companies,” the prime minister said.

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Mr Sunak envisioned even greater ties to come after the UK. joins a Pacific trading blocsaying that “the sky is the limit”.

Earlier this year it was announced that the UK would join the bloc, which is made up of countries including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Chile and Japan.

Mr Sunak’s trip to the G7 summit in Hiroshima will also include discussions on Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific.

He will unveil a new agreement with Japan to foster closer defense, security and cyber ties amid growing concerns about the threat from China.

The “Hiroshima Agreement” will be formally agreed on Thursday and will include a UK commitment to deploy a naval battle fleet to the Indo-Pacific by 2025 and double the number of UK troops in upcoming joint exercises.

The premier will also agree to launch a semiconductor partnership to reduce reliance on Beijing for essential microchip supplies.

A new cyber partnership will be announced to deepen cooperation, as will plans to accelerate the use of clean energy.