GE Secures £33m in Public Funding to Protect 850 Prestwick Jobs and Add 150 Roles

General Electric will receive up to £33m in public funding from UK, Scottish and local government sources to keep jet-engine maintenance work at Prestwick on the Ayrshire coast, the company said on Monday. The money is intended to protect 850 existing roles and add 150 new positions. GE is also committing £27m of its own capital to the site.

Plant manager Andy Prow said that without the public money GE would probably have grown at overseas locations with lower labour costs. Prestwick handles half of all GE engines for Boeing's 787, while GE also operates repair facilities in Brazil and Taiwan and a site in Poland that competes with the UK operation. Prow described government funding and partnership as essential if GE is to keep viewing the UK, Scotland and Prestwick as a place it wants to operate, noting that other facilities and countries benefit from investment and tax advantages.

The public funding will finance a 5,110 sq m building, expanding the Prestwick site by roughly 20%. Prow said further expansion could be necessary because the Boeing 787 is not expected to reach peak production until the late 2030s. The investment will also support supply-chain employment.

The £33m outlay to secure 150 new posts illustrates the challenge facing Andy Burnham after he committed to reindustrialising Britain and encouraging growth in every postcode. Reuben Aitken, who leads international investment at Scottish Enterprise, argued that pouring money into reviving declining industries would be a mistake and that the Government should be ready to select winners, concentrating support on areas where the country can compete globally. Scottish minister Melanie Ward said Prestwick required financial backing because the site has not always had a certain future.