Some of Britain’s biggest infrastructure projects could face serious delays as a result of Brexit, the country’s top engineers have warned. The engineering industry, which contributes £280bn to the economy, has said that a restriction on access to skills could delay the building of major infrastructure projects such as HS2 and Hinkley Point C power station, which was given the green light just weeks ago after months of wrangling. Brexit could also push up the costs of the already high-price projects if demand for skilled
City AM 17th Oct 2016 read more »
Brexit could have damaging implications for the development of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power project. The project has already overcome legal obstacles, conflict within the EDF board, delayed UK government approval and other various issues, but Brexit now threatens the ability of the project’s developers to bring in the skilled personnel it needs to produce the facility. City AM reports that the engineering industry, which contributes £280bn to the economy, has said that a restriction on access to skills could delay the building of major infrastructure projects such as Hinkley Point C as it increases the expense for projects if demand for skilled engineers outstrips supply. The Royal Academy of Engineers is calling on the government to guarantee access to much-needed skills in a new report, published in the wake of Prime Minister Theresa May’s move towards a so-called hard Brexit, which would include a crackdown on immigration. Engineers are calling for the vocation to be added to the government’s shortage occupation list, an index of jobs for which recruitment can be made from outside the UK. Temporary visas should be granted to those from EU countries to plug the skills gap and procedures for moving staff across borders within a business should be extended.
Power Engineering International 17th Oct 2016 read more »
What should the future energy mix look like? Was it a good idea for the UK Government to give the go ahead for the Hinkley nuclear power plant in Somerset? Those questions and many more will be discussed at the Energy Live 2016 conference in London next month. Tom Greatrex, CEO of the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA), Dr Nina Skorupska, CEO of the Renewable Energy Association and former DECC nuclear strategist Hergen Haye will be debating on whether the UK needs new nuclear or not.
Energy Live News 18th Oct 2016 read more »