Italian steel company Marcegaglia is to invest £50m in an electric arc furnace that will create 50 jobs in Sheffield as part of a deal worth a total of £485m.
The remainder will cover investment by defence specialist Leonardo at its plant at Yeovil in Somerset.
In a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni this afternoon, Prime Minister Kier Starmer confirmed the £485 million of investment into UK defence, clean growth and innovation.
The Prime Minister says he has been continuing his drive to reset the UK’s relationship with its closest European partners to deepen co-operation on shared challenges, boost bilateral trade and investment and drive economic growth at home.
Italy is one of the UK’s top ten trading partners, with annual bilateral trade between us worth £50 billion. It is also a pivotal NATO, G7 and EU player, and a key aim of the Prime Minister’s visit today was to unlock deeper co-operation across security, defence and migration.
Sir Keir said: “I am in Italy with a clear message for one of our closest international friends and partners: Britain is a place to do business.
“It is only by resetting our relationships around the world that we can break down the barriers that have been holding the UK back for so long. It means we can attract investment such as the significant sum I’m announcing today, create jobs for hardworking British people and deliver on my ultimate mission for the UK – economic growth.
The UK and Italy have also agreed to work more closely to tackle illicit financial flows linked to organised immigration crime and share intelligence to disrupt the maritime equipment supply chains used by vile people smuggling gangs.
The two leaders also agreed to deepen their defence co-operation by confirming that Italian Army and Navy will participate in UK Carrier Strike Group Operations in the Indo-Pacific next year.
