UKWA: Warehousing is one of the fastest growing sectors in the UK

The UK Warehousing Association (UKWA) has written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, ahead of next month’s Autumn Budget to highlight the importance of the sector to the national economy and present the compelling case for government to support warehousing & logistics businesses.

In line with its Policy Manifesto 2024, UKWA has focused on three key imperatives:

• Business Rates – Addressing the ‘unfair and punitive’ basis for assessing business rates, which has put warehousing at a significant disadvantage.
• Rooftop solar power – Requesting incentives/relief on investment in solar on warehouse infrastructure, while reforming regulation, energy distribution and local planning, to capitalise on the potential for the sector to double the UK’s current solar power capacity.
• Skills & Labour – Urging industry apprenticeships to be modernised by adding the new UKWA Warehouse Manager CPC to the existing L3 standard, and ensuring levy funding can be used across all relevant training.

UKWA CEO Clare Bottle says: “Warehousing is one of the fastest growing sectors in the UK and, combined with the wider logistics industry, we contribute £165 billion Gross Value Added (GVA) to the UK economy. Furthermore, due to seismic shifts in consumer demand and exponential growth in ecommerce, the UK’s warehousing footprint has grown by over 50 per cent in the last 10 years.

Therefore there is a compelling case for the new government to support warehousing and logistics businesses by fostering a regulatory and fiscal framework that acknowledges our sector as a facilitator of trade and economic growth.

While we welcome the government’s early commitment to reform the National Planning Policy Framework, there is more to be done to unlock our sector’s potential and, whilst recognising the need to ‘plug the £22bn black hole’ in the government’s accounts, we believe we have a strong case for investment and support in these three key areas.”

The new government’s first Budget is scheduled for Wednesday 30 October 2024.