In announcing the UK’s 2021 budget, chancellor Rishi Sunak confirmed the location of the first eight freeports that will be established in the country – at East Midlands Airport, Felixstowe and Harwich, Humber, Liverpool City Region, Plymouth, Solent, Thames and Teesside.

The port of Felixstowe

Typically, a freeport is a place to carry out business inside a country’s land border where different Customs rules apply. The UK’s freeports model combines Customs zones with tax reliefs, planning freedoms and support for regeneration and innovation.