Sir Kier Starmer yesterday laid out his his 10-year industrial plan, which seeks to kickstart the stuttering economy and reduce the UK’s reliance on foreign workers.

The plan for ‘national renewal’ includes £275m in skills investment to train Britons to do jobs in growth industries which might otherwise require imported labour.

The strategy will include specific funding to train people for work in defence, digital, construction and – crucially for the automotive industry – engineering roles.

In response to the announcement, the SMMT offered its support to the measures, saying that said that ‘bold government action’ is now ‘essential’.

The trade body also pointed to the UK’s recent trade deals with and the as causes for optimism within the industry.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: ‘We welcome the Government’s Industrial Strategy, a 10-year plan which answers our call for a long-term commitment to automotive manufacturing.

‘With action to reduce electricity costs, upskill workers and unlock finance, it lays the foundation on which we can build our future.

‘We now need to see the Strategy implemented and at pace, because competitors will move fast so our window of opportunity will not remain open for long.

‘The prize, however, in terms of jobs, innovation and economic growth – green growth at that – is worth the investment.’

The latest Government strategy comes as a new SMMT report revealed that the automotive industry has low confidence in global trading conditions and doubts about the ability to meet net zero ambitions, amid rising costs and falling profitability.

That report can be read in full but ministers say that the latest plan will help put businesses back on the right track.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the strategy ‘will help transform our skills system to end the overreliance on foreign labour and ensure British workers can secure good, well-paid jobs in the industries of tomorrow and drive growth and investment right across the country’.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson added: ‘Skills rightly run right through the heart of this industrial strategy because they are key to breaking the link between background and success for young people and delivering prosperity for our country’

Stephen Phipson, the boss of manufacturers’ organisation Make UK, also welcomed the skills announcement, saying: ‘We look forward to working with the Government to fix the skills gap in manufacturing, which has been the sector’s Achilles’ heel for decades.’