MP Blake Stephenson urges Government to ‘turbo charge’ Bedfordshire economy with Universal Studios investment

Last year, Universal bought land in Bedford Borough with a view to building a new theme park and resort experience there, which would become the company’s first in Europe.

And Mid Bedfordshire MP Blake Stephenson secured a Westminster Hall debate on tourism in Bedfordshire where he spoke about the many benefits the investment would bring to the local area and urged the Government to ensure the deal gets the go ahead.

During the debate, he said: “The site that used to be the world’s largest brickworks, at Stewartby in my constituency, which once fired the bricks that built our nation, now has the potential to power our local economy again, as the home as the Universal UK theme park project.

“Backed by 92% of local people and local leaders from all parties, this would be a £50 billion boost for our local economy, bringing around 20,000 jobs for local people, but would also, crucially, offer us an opportunity to turbocharge our local tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors with potentially 12 million more visitors in our area every year.

“It is a game changer—bringing millions more visitors to Bedfordshire to stay in our communities and see all that we have to offer.”

You can see Blake’s full speech here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8Webd_Zk18