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Caroline Dinenage - CETC Apprentices - Daedalus
Caroline Dinenage - CETC Apprentices - Daedalus

Jobs and Skills

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Caroline Dinenage - CETC Apprentices - Daedalus

Caroline has worked tirelessly to fulfil her election pledge to secure the best future for the Daedalus site, a former disused Military Airfield, to increase jobs and skills in our area.

In October 2010, Caroline organised and chaired a mini summit with all the key stakeholders which formed the Daedalus Strategy Group. She continued to chair the group until October 2015. It was instrumental in Daedalus’ successful bid to become an Enterprise Zone and successive funding bids which have seen over £50 million invested in the site by various bodies.

She continues to work closely with the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership/Solent Partners, Homes England and other stakeholders and has welcomed a number of key Government Ministers to the site. The Solent Enterprise Zone has created and/or safeguarded around 950 full time and construction jobs at Daedalus.

  • In September 2014, CEMAST opened on the site, training over 1100 annually with students specialising in engineering and manufacturing.
  • In March 2015, The Innovation Centre was opened supporting new businesses by providing office space, workshop facilities and financial advice.
  • In 2017 the Civil Engineering Training Centre opened, offering intensive 20 week construction and groundwork apprenticeships. Over 1,665 apprentices will be trained at this centre between 2018 and 2023.
  • In July 2018 a £6.6m extension to the Innovation Centre was completed, doubling the size, creating 33 new office units, five new workshops and new parking spaces as well as 300 new jobs.
  • Caroline worked hard to retain coastguard facilities and jobs at the site after the closure of the Lee-on-the-Solent Maritime and Coastguard Agency and campaigned to see the new Maritime Operations Centre based locally at Titchfield.
  • The second phase of Daedalus Park is now complete and nearly all of the units were snapped up whilst they were under construction. Britten Norman, the only independent civil aircraft manufacturer in the UK, are already based at Daedalus and have announced that they are creating a further 50 jobs.

Most recently, Caroline pressed Minister for Defence Procurement, James Cartlidge, to consider StandardAero Fleetlands as an ideal location for the Government's New Medium Helicopter programme, which would create upwards of 175 new jobs in the Gosport area.

Caroline is a keen supporter of apprenticeship schemes and even completed her own mini-apprenticeship as a barista at Costa Coffee on Gosport High Street. She also ran a campaign to shine a light on the diversity of apprenticeships in the Gosport Constituency, which culminated in the learners being invited to Parliament and greeted by the then-Apprenticeships and Skills Minister, the Rt Hon Robert Halfon MP.

In the early weeks as an MP, Caroline successfully campaigned against the Defence Training Review which would have seen the Royal Navy School of Engineering at HMS Sultan moved to South Wales. However, in November 2016, the Defence Estate Review announced that HMS Sultan would be disposed of by 2026. Caroline urged the Government to reconsider its decision and in February 2019 it was announced that the closure of HMS Sultan would be indefinitely delayed. In 2022, it was announced that the MOD no longer intends on disposing of HMS Sultan.

Caroline has frequently met with the owners of the Haslar Hospital estate and lobbied them to secure a positive future and local jobs on this much-loved site, which was sold off by the previous Labour Government, as well as the developers and management company, so as to raise residents' concerns. She hopes that the widely stated plans for the site will come to fruition.

As a former Women and Equalities Minister, and a current member of the Women and Equalities Committee, Caroline continues to advocate for further support for women and girls in business. During her role as Minister of Women and Equalities, Caroline championed getting more women on boards, and introduced legislation on Gender Pay Gap reporting. She also hosted an event for International Women’s Day, aimed at encouraging more women to get start and grow their own businesses. Since then, she has questioned Ministers in the House of Commons over their steps to support female entrepreneurs. At the last Budget, in March 2024, Caroline joined a successful campaign calling on the Chancellor to overturn changes to investment regulations that disproportionately disadvantaged start-ups founded and funded by women.

Most recently, Caroline welcomed Mims Davies, Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, to Gosport, to see the seminal work being done by Gosport Health Model Office to support those with additional needs finding a job.

Caroline has also welcomed the Government's Start-Up Loan initiative which has helped 37 local businesses.

Commenting on the latest Budget, Caroline praised changes to VAT thresholds and freezes to fuel duty, which alongside the funding she secured for sites like the Waterfront development and Daedalus airport, would be extremely welcome for small businesses in Gosport, Lee-on-the-Solent, Stubbington and Hill Head.

News

Turbo Charge Investment in Female Entrepreneurship says Gosport MP

Thursday, 14 July, 2022
Yesterday, in Women and Equalities Oral Parliamentary Questions, local MP Dame Caroline Dinenage asked Minister Chloe Smith MP what steps her department is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support female entrepreneurs. As a former Women and Equalities Minister, and a current member of the Wom
pensioner

Caroline welcomes campaign to boost pension credit claims

Friday, 13 May, 2022
Local MP, Dame Caroline Dinenage, has welcomed a new Conservative campaign to boost the take-up of Pension Credit across the Gosport Constituency as part of wider support with the cost of living. Pension Credit is a top up for our most vulnerable pensioners that is worth an average of £3,300.
Gosport to be Levelled Up!

Gosport to be Levelled Up!

Thursday, 21 April, 2022
Dame Caroline Dinenage, the local MP for Gosport, has welcomes news that her constituency has been awarded £1 million in Levelling Up funding through the Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF). This money will be given to locally elected authorities and leaders who best know what their communities need – h
MP welcomes next step in Daedalus regeneration

MP welcomes next step in Daedalus regeneration

Wednesday, 13 April, 2022
Gosport MP, Caroline Dinenage, has today welcomed the announcement of the Daedalus Development Company who will lead the development of the Daedalus Waterfront Site at Lee on the Solent. After a long tender process, Homes England has confirmed that Murray Twohig Development, Orwell Real Estate and
Caroline

Lee's Kebab Awards Finalist Backed by MP!

Monday, 7 February, 2022
Gosport MP, Dame Caroline Dinenage, welcomes the news that Antep Turkish Kitchen in Lee on the Solent has made it to the final of the British Kebab Awards.  Antep Turkish Kitchen is up against five others in the final for Best Newcomer outside of London.
Levelling Up

Gosport to benefit from Levelling Up

Wednesday, 2 February, 2022
Gosport MP, Dame Caroline Dinenage, today welcomed the government’s flagship Levelling Up White Paper which will transform Gosport by increasing opportunity and prosperity. Gosport is one of 68 towns receiving a package of expert advice and support which will help to deliver long-term transformatio
Caroline Westminster

Caroline Backs Lee’s Kebab Awards Finalists!

Wednesday, 26 January, 2022
Gosport MP, Dame Caroline Dinenage, welcomes the news that two businesses in Lee on the Solent have made it to the semi-finals in the 2022 British Kebab Awards. Lee Kebab & Pizza House is in the semi-finals for Best Regional Takeaway category, while Antep Turkish Kitchen is in the semi-finals f
Caroline Westminster

Caroline Backs Female-led Business

Thursday, 13 January, 2022
Local MP, Caroline Dinenage, has called for the Government to provide further support for women in enterprise who have been disproportionately affected by the coronavirus pandemic.   Caroline has long campaigned for measures to inspire female entrepreneurs and support women in business, h
AVH

Caroline crowns Gosport’s Best Shop!

Friday, 7 January, 2022
Local MP, Caroline Dinenage, has visited Alverstoke Village Hardware to present them with their prize for being voted Gosport’s Best Independent Shop by residents of Gosport, Lee on the Solent, Stubbington and Hill Head. After a close fought online competition in the months before Christmas, Alvers
bisc

Caroline announces Gosport’s Best Independent Shop 2021!

Tuesday, 7 December, 2021
Local MP, Caroline Dinenage, has revealed the name of Gosport’s Best Independent Shop as noted for by residents of Gosport, Lee on the Solent, Stubbington and Hill Head! Alverstoke Village Hardware have been crowned as Gosport’s Best Independent Shop 2021.
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Caroline Dinenage MP Gosport

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