Manchester Airport has welcomed news of a “landmark agreement” to allow more direct services between the UK and China.

The Department for Transport has announced there will be a 50% increase in the number of permitted weekly flights, from 100 to 150. And the creation of extra capacity is aimed at stimulating direct connectivity to and from airports outside of London, which the DfT says “allows for a huge expansion in routes.”

The news comes after report into the economic impact of Hainan Airlines’ service to Beijing revealed it had driven an uplift in trade, tourism and inward investment, as well as boosting the North’s universities.

Compiled by economic consultancy Steer Davies Gleeve, the study showed that:

–          UK export values from Manchester Airport have increased 265% to £200m per month since the Hainan Airlines service started;

–          A visitor spend of £140m, which is more than double the value expected prior to the launch;

–          40% more people in the North are now travelling to China than prior to the commencement of the route;

–          Passenger volumes are 15% higher than predicted;

–          Manchester’s inward investment pipeline has doubled in 12 months;

–          International student numbers at Manchester University have grown at twice the national average

The report was also launched in China by a ministerial delegation from the UK Government in Shanghai to promote trade and investment opportunities in the Northern Powerhouse.

Led by Trade Minister Baroness Fairhead and Northern Powerhouse Minister Jake Berry, the group met with prospective investors and trading partners at the China International Industry Fair.

Manchester Airport also has a direct route to Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific, which was increased to a daily frequency last week due to the success it has enjoyed in the three years since launching.

Andrew Cowan, CEO of Manchester Airport, said: “Our connections to both Beijing and Hong Kong have led to significantly higher volumes of exports and inward investment, while the North’s universities have benefited from increased international student numbers and research collaborations with Chinese institutions.

“Importantly, the routes have stimulated brand new demand for travel between the UK and China, which among other things has delivered a huge boost to the visitor economy across the North.”

The announcement builds on successful discussions in October 2016 that saw limits on passenger flights between the two countries raised from 40 per week to a maximum of 100.

The number of Chinese tourists visiting the UK has rocketed during the first half of this year. Between January and June, 115,000 visits were made from China to the UK, a rise of 47% on the same period last year. Spending also increased to £231 million, up 54%.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said: “These agreements are an important part of preparing Britain for a post-Brexit world and making sure we have access to key markets in the Far East, and they come at a time when our exports are growing and we continue to attract international investment. It just underlines that Britain will do well regardless of the outcome of the Brexit negotiations.

“The whole government is working to secure the best possible future relationship with the EU, and great progress has been made this week, but no one should believe that Britain’s future success depends on decisions taken in Brussels.”

Rhys Whalley, Executive Director of the Manchester China Forum, said: “It is clear that direct connectivity to high growth markets like China is key to the success of the Northern Powerhouse vision and the creation of a balanced UK economy.

“The services from Manchester to Hong Kong and Beijing have already delivered wide-ranging economic and social benefits and further strengthened relations between the North and China.

“As highlighted earlier this week during the UK-China People to People Dialogue, delivering enhanced connectivity outside of our capital cities will be critical in driving growth and engagement with key growth markets in a post-Brexit era. This UK-China bilateral agreement paves the way for new direct services between the North and other Chinese cities to be established, which will help deliver even greater volumes of trade, tourism and investment.”

Manchester Airport continues to speak with airlines about the launch of new services to additional Chinese cities.

Catchpoint (UK) are expanding and have just recently moved premises. A building on Croft Head Road, Blackburn was selected and has been completely renovated into amazing sleek new offices for the company. The picture-perfect new office building represents how much Catchpoint (UK) have grown over the last 20 years, since established in 1997.

Catchpoint (UK) work alongside the largest organisations in the UK and Ireland. Their new headquarters now showcases and reflects their innovative products and services, as well as their remarkable team!

Michael Lynch, the Managing Director said, “The decision on the big move and expansion had to be made, due to the growing number of employees over the past years our old building was on the verge of being outgrown. Furthermore, these offices no longer reflected our company’s full potential and current place in the market… Renovating the new building on Croft Head Road now gives the Catchpoint team a more spacious and comfortable place to work, as well as the potential to grow further in the future.”

“The renovation took over a year of planning and developing because the entire building had to be stripped back to its original shell. It’s now an amazing and spacious place to work for all of our employees here at Catchpoint. We are also in the development stages of implementing our on-site trade showroom, which will showcase all of our commercial products.”

Stanmore Insurance, the broker behind Nursery Scheme dot2dot, was crowned ‘Schemes Broker of the Year’ last night at the prestigious ‘Insurance Times Awards’ held at the O2 in London, beating 11 other scheme brokers to the prize. Established in 2003, dot2dot is the UK’s leading nursery and childcare insurance specialist.

The Insurance Times said, “The awards, celebrate the biggest and best in general insurance, they are the highlight of the UK insurance calendar.”

dot2dot, the brainchild of Stanmore Director Jackie Hyde, impressed the judges with the level support and expert advice their customers receive.

“I like to think we find solutions to the issues that keep our nursery owners up at night. We’re always there to help and if we don’t know the answer, we find someone who does”. Said Jackie.

This customer first attitude clearly struck a chord with the judging panel as did dot2dot’s new branding, which launched this summer. The new tagline “the bear that cares” encompasses their customer service philosophy and their soft and cuddly mascot Stanley Bear is perfectly suited to the market they support.

“The brand doesn’t look like anything else in the market place and that’s important to us, we want to stand out from the competition and be relevant to our customer base. We’re delighted that the judges picked up on this.”

Stanmore Insurance Brokers employs 22 members of staff and is based in Little Lever, Bolton. The business was formed in 1962 and has continued to go from strength to strength supporting local business and individuals. As well as their work with nurseries nationally through the dot2dot scheme.