Name: First Delegated Legislation Committee
Uploaded: 2026-11-10T18:00:09+00:00
Duration: 2782 s

00:05 - 00:10

Speaker 1

Motion in the name of Stephanie Peacock relating to financial assistance to industry.

00:10 - 00:13

Speaker 2

I call the Minister to move that the Committee has considered the motion.

00:13 - 01:10

Speaker 4

Thank you, Chair. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship Mrs. Barker, and I beg to move that the Committee has considered the motion in front of us today, and it relates to truly historic inward investment into the UK of the Universal United Kingdom Resort in Bedfordshire. In June this year, the Government announced that we had reached an agreement with Comcast, NBCUniversal, and its subsidiary, UDX Development Company Ltd, to unlock over six billion in direct capital investment to construct and operate a world-class theme park and entertainment resort complex. The Delegated Legislation Committee is asking to approve a grant of up to 450 million under the Industrial Development Act and to ensure that Universal is able to go ahead with its ambitious plans. I was really pleased to visit the site in June on behalf of the Government, and to meet the 100 new staff that Universal had already employed.

01:10 - 02:25

Speaker 3

These new 100 employees leading on a range of skills including design, operations, and construction management are the first of an expected 800 8,500 who will work on site when it opens in 2031. Universal is committed to supporting opportunities for local residents and workers and intends to source 80% of its jobs from within Bedford and the surrounding area. Over the construction period, between now and the expected completion date of 2031, over 20 20,000 jobs in construction are expected to be created, with up to 5,000 on site at peak time. This is, again, a fantastic opportunity for people at all stages of their career in construction to be part of, and it is one of the single biggest investments in the visitor economy. Universal are looking to engage people at all stages in their careers to work in the park, and employ- empowering local authorities will also be key to making the most of this investment by aligning local ambitions to government priorities to unlock economic growth, and to ensure the benefits are felt locally through new jobs, skills, homes, and better transport.

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