THE Chancellor Rachel Reeves has vowed to “get the best possible outcome” from land earmarked for UK Health Agency to move to Harlow.

Ms Reeves has written to Harlow MP following his appeal to her over the facility that has been “in development” for over ten years.

Chris Vince said: ‘After many months of lobbying, I am making public the letter I have written to the Chancellor and her response, calling for the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to move to Harlow. If the move goes ahead, it will represent a £3.2 billion investment in our town, bringing around 3,000 skilled jobs to the area.

Residents of Harlow will likely be aware that there have been plans to develop this site for many years, dating back almost a decade. I want to revisit the timeline and inform residents how we have arrived at the position we are in today.

Back in 2015, the government of the time announced that Public Health England (PHE) would be relocating to the old GlaxoSmithKline building in the Pinnacles area of Harlow. This was set to be a £400 million investment, expected to directly employ 2,750 people and open in 2024.

The £400 million investment was welcomed by all political parties, including the Labour-led council at the time. Councillors even visited the existing PHE site in Porton Down, Wiltshire, to witness the incredible work being carried out there.

A lot has changed since 2015.

The pandemic cast a new spotlight on public health, and since then, Public Health England has undergone a complete transformation. It is now split into the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID).

Since that transformation, the planned move has gone almost silent. There was no word from the outgoing Member of Parliament during his final years in office, and nothing from the Conservatives since they took control of the Council. There’s a phrase in politics about “kicking decisions into the long grass.”

The former government was guilty of doing just that in this case.

You would think, given the significance of this development for Harlow, that the Conservative Leader of the Council would be knocking on my door, asking when it’s going to happen. Yet not once has he raised the issue.

I hope that if we are successful in securing this investment, it will once again be welcomed by political parties of all colours—just as it was when it was first announced back in 2015.

That is why, today, I have made public the letter I wrote to the Chancellor dated 25th March and her response, calling for the planned move to be brought back to the table. The decision is likely to be made as part of the Spending Review, and we should know the outcome by late spring.

So, what does this mean for Harlow?

Every Friday I have the privilege of visiting schools in Harlow. It is honestly the best part of my week. I’m always struck by how engaged, insightful, and intelligent the children are. I am usually grilled by students who ask me a wide range of questions about my role as an MP. A recurring question that is often asked is “What are you doing to make Harlow a better place?”

If we are successful in securing this investment, these children will not only get the chance to visit the new facility on school trips—they will have a world-class science centre on their doorstep, and they will become the future scientists who work there.

“Let me be very clear: this is by no means a done deal. The original 2015 investment was for £400 million; since then, the estimated cost has risen to £3.2 billion. If we are successful and the government gives the development the green light, it would be one of the biggest investments in Harlow since its creation in 1947”.

The chancellor’s response is below.