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Stephen Timms MPMP's Packaging Reception |
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My thanks to Gerry Sutcliffe for his introduction. I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak to you today, and I would like to focus on the work my Department is doing to support the packaging industry. First let me put it into context. Manufacturing in the UK matters. It creates a fifth of our national output, employs four million people and produces the majority of our exports. The success of UK manufacturing is therefore crucial to our country's prosperity now and in the future. We made our recognition of that clear in the Manufacturing Strategy published earlier this year – a document widely welcomed by all sides of industry. Packaging is a key manufacturing industry. It faces many challenges, particularly increased competition and the trend towards transferring UK manufacturing overseas, which has a direct impact on packaging suppliers. In order for everyone – firms, intermediaries and Government – to be in a position to be able to take strategic action, we need first to better understand the issues affecting the sector's productivity and competitiveness. That is why my Department has been supporting research into the packaging sector. The aim is to improve the Government's understanding of the industry, including the factors affecting productivity and competitiveness, but also to help the companies and others to focus on the key issues. So what form has this research taken? Firstly, PIRA (pronounced pire-er) is currently putting the finishing touches to a study on the Packaging Industry in the UK entitled 'Packaging in the Third Millennium'. The study looks at a number of product streams in the packaging sector and the report will include an action plan for industry and government to take forward key recommendations. Secondly, PIRA is also carrying out a more specific study of the corrugated sector's supply chain, which is due to finish in January 2003. This study stems directly from a recommendation in the Confederation of Paper Industries' Competitiveness Study on the UK Paper & Board Industry. Thirdly, an E-commerce Impact Assessment Study of the UK packaging industry has been produced by PriceWaterhouseCoopers. It is part of a series of studies commissioned by DTI to explore the impact of e-commerce across the UK's key industries. And finally, the Institute of Packaging is putting the finishing touches to its Mapping Exercise of the UK packaging industry. Based on a survey of nearly 3,000 UK packaging companies, and assisted by a DTI grant, the project aims to develop an electronic database that will map the size, distribution and skills needs of the industry. A report will be produced to give a snapshot of the industry and the launch is planned for early in 2003. So that's the research that will give us a firm foundation to take future initiatives forward. But research alone will not improve productivity and competitiveness. The DTI is therefore already funding the Process Industries Centre for Manufacturing Excellence – or PICME – and the Metal Industries Centre of Excellence – or MICE –, both of which include elements of the plastics packaging and metal packaging industries respectively. These Industry Forums provide considerable help for participating companies to address manufacturing improvements. There will clearly be a need for more individual and collaborative work in the future. Let me also just take the opportunity to mention the Packaging Event taking place at the DTI's Conference Centre on 4 December, which I will also be addressing. That is being organised by the Packaging Federation, and will feature the launch of both the PIRA Competitiveness Study and PriceWaterhouseCoopers E-commerce study, and also presentations from the White Rose Faraday Packaging Partnership and the Institute of Packaging. This is a significant event for the DTI – and I hope for the sector – as it brings together action relating to all the main packaging material streams. I very much hope that this event will be the start of more work in 2003 to improve the productivity and competitiveness of the packaging sector. My request would be that we keep working together to achieve the future success that we all want. Thank you. |
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Other speeches by Stephen Timms MP
(the following are available from the archive) |
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