A recent report from Oxford Economics provides striking insight into the far-reaching influence of BAE Systems to the UK economy.
The study indicates that BAE Systems supported an impressive 132,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2022, a 10% increase from 2020.
The company’s contribution extended to £11 billion in GDP last year, representing 0.4% of the domestic economy.
Here are the key figures from the report:
- BAE Systems supported 132,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2022, representing a 10% increase from 2020.
- The company contributed £11 billion to the UK GDP in the past year, amounting to 0.4% of the domestic economy.
- BAE Systems directly employed nearly 40,000 individuals, supporting an additional 49,000 jobs across its supply chain, and many more in local communities.
- Approximately 40% of the company’s employees are based in the UK’s most underprivileged areas.
- BAE Systems spent £3.9 billion with around 6,000 suppliers in 2022.
- The company invested £1.4 billion in research and development in the last year.
- BAE Systems spent £180 million on education and skills-building last year, nearly doubling its investment from the previous year.
- The company exported £3.7 billion worth of goods and services from the UK in 2022.
Charles Woodburn, BAE Systems Chief Executive, said, “As one of the UK’s largest employers, we recognise our responsibility to help deliver economic prosperity as well as national security. Our continued investment in skills, technology, and the communities where we live and work supports thousands of jobs and is creating opportunities for people to play an important role in helping to keep our country and our allies safe.”
Lord Johnson, Minister for Investment, stated, “Our defence sector is driving growth, investment and jobs in every corner of the UK, helping to grow the economy and keeping us at the cutting edge of innovation. BAE Systems’ contribution to this cannot be overstated, and this new research underlines just how vital they are to our world-leading defence industry.”
James Cartlidge, Minister for Defence Procurement, commented, “We cannot keep the nation safe without the extensive support of the UK Defence industry. Defence companies support jobs and provide important boosts to local economies across the country. BAE Systems is no exception, driving prosperity and putting skills-building at the heart of their work.”
Long may it continue and hopefully get even better. We need to bring contracts forward now. Not promises but contracts. Make it very difficult to cancel.
So does the NHS
Sorry. I don’t understand your comment.
The skills and education budget is self serving it trains their own staff and apprentices
Who are employed from deprived regions and trained, rather than just headhunting overseas staff ready to go like many other UK companies.
So if I read this right they support roughly the same number of jobs in Scotland as they do in the UK per head of population.
Kind of puts paid to all the talk of Scotland getting subsidised with UK ship building contracts thrown at it to stop Scottish independence and England getting left behind.
Issue you fail to grasp as always in your bitter little rant. If you really want Independence be accountable and actually pay from Scottish coffers. Or let England Vote if it want to keep Scotland. face it SNP did a wonderful job of filling its pockets right under your noses, while every public service failed and blamed Westminster, its BORING and sad. £60M taken out of the crown estates in energy created in windfarms. HOT AIR AND WIND IN SCOTLAND, for Centuries.
Just proves that money spent on defence is not money wasted
It supports some of our poorest communities such as barrow, Glasgow and the West Country. Not to mention parts of Lancashire
The fact the government gets back 0.4% of gdp from one supplier alone is great news & shows what could be achieved if we actually sorted our shit out properly
Well done BAES and thank you
I’m not sure we could describe Barrow as poor. Have a look at the proliferation of housing at Roose creeping towards Leece and Dalton; couple of golf clubs too 😉
It’s one of the most deprived areas of uk.. thats a fact.
it’s not the good bits that count it’s how bad the bad bits are..
without BAES barrow has nothing else….
and I like barrow…
Well Cavendish Estates have sold their interests in the flats on Barrow Island – all other house prices are on the up.
There are more than a few SMEs operating in the off shore fields: cable termination, turbines, design
Fittingly, bog paper still comes from Barrow!
As an ex-Army man, I have no trouble with the MoD buying BAE Land equipment. I can’t recall a dud product (from BAE or predecessor companies) over many decades.
Wish we had bought their CV90 recce vehicle instead of the GDUK product – and M777 towed gun!
CV90 lost in the procurement award, then Army top brass wanted it to Hover. BAEs destroyed itself in the UKGovs eyes and they didnt trust anything it said.
Bit of context here. NHS supports 1 Million Jobs across the UK. With a Population of 55m. Asda Supports 145,000 jobs across the UK. BAE not so big all of a sudden.
Yeah and a tone of young people start saying to the gov. “There’s no jobs, so I can’t live give us money!” Cause they can’t sit behind a shop desk and relax.😐
Up in the Highlands (Scotland) for every one road worker like the people doing new tar etc. For about every 1 working man there is about 10 idle men 🙄
Just a question… why did bae find it necessary to extol its own virtues? The UK’s GDP is nothing to do with bae. The fact that it is only 0.4% speaks volumes.
The number of people directly employed by BAE in the UK, doesn’t even register in the top 50 highest employers, in the UK.