Government minister Quentin Davies is to address a conference for companies in the defence industry in Manchester next week.

Davies, minister for defence equipment and support, will be speaking at a time of great uncertainty for the sector, with a Strategic Defence Review due after the General Election and a recent green paper which advocated increased international co-operation on major projects.

Companies with an interest in the defence sector are being invited to attend the event, which will be held on Friday, March 5 at the Radisson Blu Hotel at Manchester Airport, starting at 9am.

It has been organised by the Keeping Our Future Afloat Campaign (KOFAC), which is based in Barrow-in-Furness.

KOFAC chairman Terry Waiting said: “Against the backdrop of defence being one of the most resilient elements of the region's manufacturing industrial base and likely constraints on government resources for defence spending, it is likely that hard choices and important decisions lie ahead.”

He said the conference would be "an opportunity for industry, politicians of all parties and trade unions to tell the current and incoming government what the defence priorities should be.

"The aim is to agree what the region's unions, industry and supporting public sector should do to ensure the industry propsers."

Other speakers will include John Hudson, managing director of BAE Systems Submarine Solutions; Bernie Hamilton, national officer for aerospace at the trade union Unite; and Howard Gibbs, head of defence export at UK Trade & Investment.

Anyone wishing to register for the event can call Furness Enterprise on 01229 820611.

Source: Crain's Manchester Business