Torridge and West Devon MP, Rt Hon Geoffrey Cox QC, held a meeting with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Rt Hon Greg Clark MP, to discuss the options available to maintain operations at Appledore Shipyard.
During the meeting, Mr Cox asked the Secretary of State to consider what assistance his Department could give to the Yard and any potential new owner of the site.
Following the meeting, Mr Cox, who is also the Government’s Attorney General, said: “I had a constructive and positive meeting with the Secretary of State. We discussed the conditions which must be satisfied and could enable his Department to help the Shipyard under new ownership.
Working together with Torridge District Council and the SW Business Council Taskforce, I am hopeful that an owner committed to the skilled workforce at Appledore can be found and I will continue to engage with all interested parties to ensure this is so.”
The meeting is a continuation of a series of engagements Mr Cox has held with the Secretary of State for Defence, the landlord of the shipbuilding site and Union Representatives of the workforce who Mr Cox welcomed to the House of Commons in November 2018.
The local MP has also approached the Department for Local Government to request an abatement of business rates applicable to the Appledore site to incentivise a potential new owner to take over current operations.
