Communities along the route of Britain’s new railway are being encouraged to get involved, as HS2 brings a new engagement roadshow to popular locations across the country.
The roadshow will highlight to the public all the opportunities HS2 is offering, including jobs, skills and education prospects, as well as how to apply for funding as part of the £40 million earmarked for community and business projects along the route.
Starting from Saturday 25 May, HS2 will be heading to Birmingham Pride then making several stops including:
Mark Thurston, CEO of HS2 Ltd, said:
HS2 is more than a railway and there are many opportunities for those who live along the line of route and beyond. As a transformative project for the country, we aim to be creative in our approach to engagement and want to interact with as many different communities as possible.
Our new mobile engagement roadshow is just one of the ways we are reaching out to people, and ensuring the opportunities HS2 offers are available to everyone. As part of our drive to be a leading project in our approach to engagement, our teams are working closely with the local communities they serve, and someone from each area will be on hand to speak with visitors at all of our roadshow events.
The engagement roadshow – entitled Communities, Conversations & Connections – will also highlight the HS2 Helpdesk, as well as email, freephone and minicom service which is available to the public all day, every day of the year for all queries relating to the new railway.
Mark Thurston added:
At the peak of construction we will need 30,000 people to deliver the new high speed railway, and HS2 is investing in young people now to get our future workforce ready. They are the people who will help us deliver HS2 as it extends from London to the Midlands and then on to the North. Our roadshow will also give visitors more information on how they can play their part in Britain’s new high speed railway.
HS2 Ltd is also encouraging businesses to attend the roadshow, as specialist staff will be on hand to discuss supply chain opportunities. They will explain how SMEs in particular can bid for contracts on the project.
Julie King, Community and Stakeholder Engagement Director, HS2 Ltd, said:
Last year we engaged with more than 36,000 people at over 2,000 engagement events across the whole HS2 route. Our new community engagement roadshow allows us to showcase the opportunities provided by HS2 in more areas than ever before.
Experts from all areas of the project will be on hand, along with a wealth of resources to experience on the trailer or take away, ensuring that people can get the most out of this crucial investment in the UK’s national transport system.
The mobile engagement will be taking place throughout May and June at 14 locations along the Phase One (Birmingham to London) and Phase 2a (Birmingham to Crewe) sections of the route.
May 2019
June 2019
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The UK and Azerbaijan have committed to renew combined efforts to tackle challenges facing the energy sector.
The UK and Azerbaijan have committed to renew combined efforts to tackle challenges facing the energy sector, including building on growing renewable energy sectors in both countries.
In trade talks in London this week (Wednesday 22 May), the two nations agreed to further strengthen their existing trade relationship.
Trade Policy Minister, George Hollingbery co-chaired the largest ever UK-Azerbaijan Joint Intergovernmental Commission (JIC) alongside Azerbaijan’s Minister of Energy, Mr Parviz Shahbazov.
The talks explored opportunities to strengthen and build on trade ties, with a particular focus on the emerging renewables markets as well as the challenges currently facing the energy sectors in both Britain and Azerbaijan. The Ministers agreed the need to diversify economies, invest in green energy and build renewable capabilities. Minister Hollingbery also outlined the UK’s expertise in this sector.
The UK is a world leader in the renewables sector and clean energy production and has reduced emissions faster than any other G7 country. With world-leading capabilities in areas including offshore wind, green finance and waste management the UK stands ready to support Azerbaijan in diversifying its economy.
Azerbaijan is an important trading partner for the UK, with total trade between the UK and Azerbaijan worth over £1 billion in 2018, an increase of 66.4% on the previous year. This highlights potential opportunities for both British and Azerbaijani businesses, consumers and exporters.
Trade Policy Minister, George Hollingbery said:
This week I co-chaired the third meeting of the UK-Azerbaijan Joint Intergovernmental Commission, as we seek to strengthen our trade and investment relationship.
Azerbaijan is one of the world’s fastest growing economies and a key trading partner, with over 400 British businesses currently doing business in Azerbaijan.
The UK is committed to strengthening trading ties between our two nations as we look to take control of our own independent trade policy for the first time in over 40 years and today’s renewed commitment around renewable energy is an encouraging first step.
The UK is already the single largest investor in Azerbaijan, contributing 51% of total investment in the region and is well placed to increase business in the region.
In addition to energy firms, a variety of British business including SNC-Lavalin Atkins, a leading engineering solutions provider, are already successfully trading the region.
Exports of goods and services involved in the sector, including advanced engineering, project management services and specialist manufacture for complex equipment was worth over £644million in 2018 alone.
James Todd, Atkins Azerbaijan Country Manager said:
Azerbaijan represents an exciting market for Atkins as we seek to use our multi-discipline expertise and local partnerships to add value across sectors, from city master planning to renewable energy development.
We’ve had strong growth over the past three years and expect this to continue into the future, supported by a growing economy, a strong support network of UK businesses and an increasing market appetite for services well aligned with our expertise.
The UK and Azerbaijan already enjoy a strong political and commercial relationship and UK businesses are ideally positioned to work with Azerbaijani partners to support our shared interests including investment in research and development and the promotion of renewables, agriculture, healthcare and education.
Changes to school-to-school improvement to be tested in up to nine areas of the country.