To wonder why we are not making Oxford’s new solar panels in the UK and they are being made in Brandenburg Germany

[Noras]

https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&sca_esv=23b5c302cf261505&hl=en-gb&sxsrf=ADLYWIJ6tpfLH5-EPUgsgNls2BqSHyW9SQ%3A1732775126189&kgmid=%2Fg%2F1tg9s5mn&q=Next%20Generation%20Renewable%20Energy&shndl=30&source=sh%2Fx%2Floc%2Fact%2Fm4%2F3

I have written to my MP on this as it seems crazy that as ever the UK devised this new tech not there is ZERO support from the Government here to help with manufacturing

Oxford PV actually went to the government found no support and set up in Germany I understand. It all seems a bit crazy but indicative of the UK’s complete lack of manufacturing.

This type of solar is ground breaking tech that will make silicone panels redundant.

I was told by my current MP ( Labour) that they have no plans to invest or do something about this!

Moreover someone told me that we had no UK manufacturing that can make the wind turbine. Propellers. There are some manufactured in the UK eg on the Isle of Wight I think but the company ( owner) is Dutch?

I am frankly incredulous that this is not being addressed urgently.

https://onthewight.com/vestas-isle-of-wight-expansion-with-production-of-85m-blades-and-50-new-roles/

Frankly I would be happier with the budget if instead of ploughing billions into the NHS we ploughed money into tech, created manufacturing and then put more money into the NHS. This is the type of manufacturing and productivity we need not as usual allowing other countries to make the profit.

Employer costs are far, far higher in Germany, even with the new UK increases factored in.

What we lack / have lacked is a government willing to support manufacturing development and easy access to the EU market.

" Oh my goodness you have swallowed the lies" Nice start to your post, by the way

I disagree.

Increase in union powers of access
Day one rights for unfair dismissal
Removal of qualification period for SSP
Earlier access to parental rights

Plus the rise in ENI as a cherry on the cake.

They all sound great in theory of course (apart from the union one) and you can argue the benefits until you are blue in the face. But I don't know if you are thinking of employing new staff? I was. I'm not now. And there you go. And if I could go to Germany I would for five years until we get a government that does not have a Chancellor with a snap of a communist behind her desk, but unfortunately I'm stuck with it like most of the private sector.

I’m not pointing this out as a failure of Government or to knock them. I’m just highlighting this is the hope that someone somewhere will take notice because to me it seems quite astounding.

This new solar tech will revolutionise solar as we know it. There are so many applications eg putting this onto the roofs of trucks or the side of houses or onto tiles etc. it will also allow solar farms to increase productivity considerably.

Oh, you'd love it here @Nordione1.

Betriebsrat that have direct intervention in companies.

Eldernzeit that lasts until the child is 3 years old.

Hierarchy of eligibility for dismissal, broadly summarised as 'if they've got kids think long and hard about it' - applies to both m/f.

Gewerbesteur, a tax of 3,5% on business profit that goes to local government.

Solidaritätszuschlag - the cost of German reunification. 5,5% I think, split between employer and employee.

There's more of course, those are just a few highlights that I'm glad to know you'd be happy to support. It does help make for a more equitable society.

I work with the IHK here, so if there's an area you're interested in moving to just let me know and I can put you in touch with a local contact.

Thoughts on my points about why employing staff in the UK is unattractive? Presumably you are also an employer in the UK yourself to have a view?

Sweet of you to offer but unfortunately my business has to be UK based. Frustrating.

I know!
I came to UK because I do see it as a country of pioneers! I am feeling deeply sad about all this at present.....

I will add, that the batteries from thin air can be made with graphene, which was first isolated in... yes, you guessed it, UK. Manchester university.

We are unatteactive.... not sure about that.
Following on the many genius ideas in the world, a good amount of them are UK based.
But, apparently, they work better on the other side of one sea or another.
We do need a proper political leadership before all the brains move abroad too.

Are these panels the one that transform the energy from the sun light straight into hydrogen?
Or is the material that is used in the panels the innovative part?
(Sorry, I had not read about them before, forgive my ignorance)

Not an employer no, but an accountant so I have a good understanding of on-costs that employers face in both the UK and Germany.

Agreed. We should be attractive. We have some of the best universities and best people. We are relatively rich still (although have been living off the riches from when we were a superpower for decades which are now running out). But unfortunately we are a health service with a country attached. That is where most of our money is spent. Technology investment is a luxury these days.

An accountant who actually runs a business though and has to assess the bottom line of your own business presumably?

If so, you'll understand the shitshow that is about to happen then and already has started in some areas. And yes this will mean that more and more green technology businesses will go abroad sadly.

My husband employer was based in the uk and Germany. When it had to lay off people/close sites it picked all the uk sites. There were less government incentives to stay and it was far cheaper/easier to lay off British workers than German ones. The Germans were much more unionised for a start.

So this has to be about government investment/planning.

I totally agree, our government seems to not want to invest in manufacturing. We could be at the forefront of the green revolution and it's good quality jobs.

https://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/oxford-scientists-ultra-thin-solar-cell-27-energy-efficiency/

more about the tech

Do you object to every product which is made (much further) overseas or just this particular one made in a European country not that far from the UK?

Vestas is a Danish company and one of my relatives works in that factory @Noras.

The UK has H&S laws, if you manufacture overseas its cheaper because it’s positively dangerous for many of the workers. Whilst accidents can always happen the costs are going to be so much smaller as they are not subject to such stringent checks. Entire factories collapsing because of no building regs? A massive chemical leak that wipes out an entire region with ongoing issues for decades and birth defects? Bangladesh and Bhooal.

It’s pretty obvious why the UK is not attractive as a manufacturing base in some cases. Safety costs money. My relative has many health checks because the chemicals used in the process of making turbines are incredibly toxic. I doubt very much the workers in China have such stringent constant health monitoring.

its obvious labour rates will be more as well. For a non professional job on the island my relative is on way more than he has ever earned.

@Nordione1 An accountant that prepares financial and management accounts for a number of small businesses (using the business definition of small here, under 50 employees and with a turnover of less than £10m).

Employee model costs exist so that you can play with the variables to see the effect on the bottom line.

Given UK taxpayers have been subsidising shareholder dividends for many years I'm happy to see the direct costs coming back more directly to the employer. If the changes coming through are enough to break a business then they are already operating on incredibly fine margins. Which is fine to do if you have the volume and the financial stability to do that. If you don't, not so good.

And honestly, you really wouldn't like the German employer taxes if you think what we pay / are going to pay in the UK are onerous.

I object to the fact that we have completely flung ourselves into a financial and services supplier with no regard for manufacturing. The added insult is that other countries are using UK designed products and stealing a march or alternatively we have the wind but can’t even build our own wind turbines. All this seems ludicrous.

Moreover with the advent of green energy and Ai more thought has to be given as to why manufacturing should be abroad. Manufacturing historically was located near coal, water and work force. When these things were cheaper you got manufacturing. If A I / robots can do quite a lot of the work and energy comes from wind - why import goods all the way from China? How is that green?

So I think we need to understand that there could be a further Industrial Revolution and embrace it here in the UK.

Real businesses are already going under. No one is employing (which fills me with dread for my children), people I know are letting people go or cutting hours, and not one accountant I know is filled with the cheer you seem to have. I don't know. Let's hope your optimism is well-placed.

I’m glad that the manufacturing is in the UK although I omagine that to move a propeller across countries would be challenging. I just wonder why the company has to be Danish and why a British company is not doing it. I’m also wondering why we could not save our steel industry to make propellers.

This is correct - a close friend was working in the sector at the time. The Tory government of the day cut off support for a rapidly growing sector at exactly the wrong time. The tories backward ideology has, over the years, damaged UK manufacturing beyond repair.

@Frowningprovidence

See also P&O who sacked mostly UK workers, being too afeared of the French social system to take them on.

But yes, many years ago when I worked for an international company, with HQ in the UK and offices in most European countries, if any cuts were to be made the UK and the US would be looked at first as they had the lower employment protection standards.

You could argue that those standards have increased in the UK but they've also continued to get stronger in other countries.

Which “government” did they go to?