The Sustainability Headlines from Rachel Reeves' Speech

Amidst criticism about her failure to deliver on the economic growth she promised during Labour’s election campaign, Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer, has made a speech outlining the UK government’s plan to boost the country’s stagnant economy.
The speech, which was broadcast to the nation from Siemens Healthineers' Oxfordshire manufacturing and development facility, was attended by British business leaders from a variety of sectors.
The lectern from which the Chancellor delivered her speech was adorned with the slogan "Kickstart Economic Growth", and the speech delivered on the ambition of this mantra.
Reeves discussed plans create a "Silicon Valley of Europe" between Oxford and Cambridge, plans to invest heavily in renewable energy, as well as plans to reform regulations to streamline large infrastructure projects.
Perhaps most notably of all, though, was the Chancellor's announcement of plans to build a third runway at London Heathrow, the UK’s largest international airport.
A third runway at Heathrow has been under consideration for many years now, with several successive governments debating its construction, but Reeves seems determined to see the project through, regardless of the controversy that has dogged it for decades.
A focus on infrastructure
During her speech, the Chancellor dedicated a great deal of time to discussing transport links in the UK, whether that be roads, railways or airports. She announced the reopening and reimagining of Doncaster Sheffield airport, which was closed during the last Conservative government.
She also announced a partnership between Prologis and the Manchester Airport Group, where the companies will work together to build a new advanced manufacturing and logistics park at East Midlands airport.
News of Reeves' intention as regards to Heathrow had been trailed long before the speech began, but she led up to it with a sense of dramatic suspense, making it the very last thing she discussed at the event.
“I can confirm today that this government supports a third runway at Heathrow and is inviting proposals to be brought forward by the summer," she said.
Deregulating the UK economy to drive growth
Naturally, Rachel Reeves and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer share the same views and plans for the UK economy.
In recent months, Starmer has made no secret of his thoughts on economic regulations.
“For too long regulation has stopped Britain building its future,” he wrote in a column in The Times.
There, he also criticised the “morass of regulation that effectively bans billions of pounds” of investment, saying that these regulations have “spread through the British economy like Japanese knotweed.”
Reeves picked up this thread and ran with it during her speech, expressing her desire to remove and reform particularly stifling pieces of red tape.
She revealed that she had been “genuinely shocked” by how slow the UK’s planning system is, citing government plans to build a solar farm in Cambridgeshire, which she says has taken a “ridiculous” three years.
Accounting for that same culture of sluggishness, some experts believe that Reeves' proposed expansion of Heathrow could take 10 years to be fully operational.
Delays aren't the only thing infuriating the cabinet with regards to regulations.
During her speech she also referenced the UK's infamous 'bat tunnel' - a £100m (US$124m) infrastructure project that was mandated by regulators overseeing wildlife conservation in the construction of HS2, a high speed railway connecting England's North and South.
Reeves expressed the government's desire to streamline big projects like HS2, Heathrow's third runway and renewable energy sites by diminishing the power of regulators, so developers can stop worrying about "the bats and the newts".
“Last week, we confirmed our priorities for the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, to rapidly streamline the process for determining applications, to make the consultation process far less burdensome and to fundamentally reform our approach to environmental regulation,” she said.
The importance of economic growth for the UK's sustainability
Towards the beginning of her speech, Rachel Reeves was keen to stress why the UK needs economic growth. She explained that economic growth will help the government put more police officers on the streets and cut hospital waiting times.
Perhaps most interestingly, though, Reeves suggested that economic growth is essential for the UK's pursuit of sustainability.
“Without growth, we cannot meet our climate goals, or give the next generation the opportunities they need to thrive,” she said.
Her decision to broadcast the speech from Siemens' hub in Oxfordshire was calculated in this sense: it emphasised the role that climate tech enterprises will have in the future of both the British economy and British sustainability.
“We are at the forefront of some of the most exciting developments in the world, like artificial intelligence and life sciences. With great companies, like DeepMind, AstraZeneca, Rolls Royce and, of course, Siemens.”
At Siemens, the Chancellor revealed that the government will now invest 2.6% of GDP on average, over the next five years, up from the 1.9% of the previous government.
This will put an additional £100bn (US$124bn) in private investment spending, which will be directed towards housing, modernised transport links and clean energy.
Sir Keir Starmer frequently emphasises the symbiotic nature of investment, economic growth and sustainability.
“Growth is the defining mission of this government,” he says.
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