Jobs and investment

Portsmouth has always been the home of the Royal Navy, and it will remain so as our new aircraft carriers join the Type 45 destroyers based here, and with two new classes of frigate still to come in the years ahead. The MoD has invested over £100m in upgrades to the Naval Base so that is ready for the new ships.

But we do not just depend on a narrow range of industries, and our economy is becoming more diverse, supporting jobs on a wider spectrum. Since becoming your MP, I have been delighted to meet new business people with some great ideas. We have had over 500 new start-ups in Portsmouth in the last couple of years alone. We have more people in work in Portsmouth South now than ever before.

Only a Conservative government can guarantee the conditions in which businesses thrive, supporting those jobs, generating the government revenue which underpins our public services. We want to take the reforms further and encourage people starting their own business. Portsmouth is a great place to work and live, and more and more people are discovering that.