Welsh Secretary Stephen Kinnock has thrown his support behind the expansion of Wales’s semiconductor industry, arguing that the Newport technology cluster can help create the high-paid, high-skilled jobs of the future.
Kinnock visited KLA in Newport alongside Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary Ken Skates as Labour looks to build on Wales’s existing strengths in advanced manufacturing and semiconductor technology.
Semiconductors are essential components in products ranging from cars and mobile phones to fridges, televisions, medical equipment and air-conditioning systems.
Writing following the visit, Kinnock said:
“Electrical devices require semi-conductors.
“Wales is at the forefront of this cutting-edge tech – & Labour is backing the Newport cluster’s expansion plans for high paid, high skilled jobs.”
Skates also highlighted the importance of the sector to the Welsh economy following the visit to KLA.
The Newport area has developed into one of the UK’s most important semiconductor clusters, bringing together specialist manufacturers, technology businesses and a skilled workforce.
KLA’s investment is a significant part of that growth. Newport City Council has highlighted a $137.8 million investment in the company’s Newport operation, with the expanded site having space for up to 750 workers.
For the Labour Government, the sector represents an opportunity not only to attract international investment but to strengthen the UK’s domestic capabilities in technology that has become increasingly important to economic and national security.
Kinnock has made developing Wales’s strengths in semiconductors, green energy and artificial intelligence part of his economic message since becoming Welsh Secretary.
The visit also underlines the potential for cooperation between the Labour Government at Westminster and the Welsh Labour Government to attract investment and ensure that communities in Wales benefit from new technologies.
With global demand for semiconductors continuing to underpin industries from automotive manufacturing to healthcare and consumer electronics, Labour believes Newport is well placed to capture a greater share of future investment.
Kinnock’s message is that Wales should not simply consume the technologies shaping the next generation of the economy — it should be one of the places developing, manufacturing and exporting them.
