THE UK government has today announced that British businesses have been helped to export to 61 countries around the world over the past year with £7.4 billion of support through UK Export Finance (UKEF) – supporting 72,000 UK jobs across the country.
Of those supported by UKEF, 83 per cent were located outside of London and a record 81 per cent were small and medium sized enterprises, according to the organisation’s annual results published today.
Anne-Marie Trevelyan, Secretary of State for International Trade, commented:
“The UK is awash with untapped export potential. We have opened the door to the world with historic trade deals and now we are helping businesses walk through it. That’s why our national export credit agency, UK Export Finance, is boosting firms’ ability to export to the world with record-breaking support year after year.”
Businesses to benefit include First Subsea Ltd, which secured bond support from UKEF to allow the Scottish energy firm to transition to renewables and secure £12 million of export orders. In February this year, it boosted the Scottish fishing industry with a £15 million General Export Facility to Peterhead-based Denholm Seafoods.
On the support, Allan Stephen, Director at Denholm Seafoods, said:
“Our growth plans are ambitious and, by utilising this funding, we’re excited to enter new markets and grow in existing ones. It is the quality of our product, coupled with this additional funding that will afford us this opportunity. As we invest in the future of Denholm Seafoods, we intend to progress the sustainability of our operations, by reducing our environmental impact as we drive the growth of our business forward.”
