Starmer pledges to scrap red tape to boost UK investment

A £1bn investment in an Essex port by P&O Ferries owner DP World appeared to be in doubt after Transport Secretary Louise Haigh described the ferry company as a “rogue operator”.

Haigh was publicly rebuked by the prime minister, and DP World will now be attending the conference, along with the bosses of investment giants such as Blackrock and L&G.

Australian firm Macquarie, which has been blamed for saddling Thames Water with unsustainable debts when it was its biggest shareholder, is promising to invest £20bn in the UK over the next five years, including an electric car charging network.

The conference is taking place at London’s Guildhall, and will feature keynote speeches from both the prime minister and Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

In his speech, Sir Keir will say he will “do everything in my power to galvanise growth including getting rid of regulation that needlessly holds back investment”.

“Where it is stopping us building the homes, the data centres, warehouses, grid connectors, roads, trainlines, you name it… we will get rid of it.”

The government will ask the UK’s competition watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority, to prioritise growth, investment, and innovation.