Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and British Prime Minister David Cameron. Photo: Twitter.

Announcements for some £70 million ($116 million) of inward investment by Israel in the UK were welcomed by British Prime Minister David Cameron, who spoke at Israel’s Knesset on Wednesday.

In a statement, the UK said a 17-member business delegation joined Cameron and Trade and Investment Minister Lord Livingston in Israel to explore “opportunities in information and communication technology, healthcare, energy and security sectors.” The announced investments are expected to create hundreds of UK jobs.

Lord Livingston said, “These announcements are testament to how the UK and Israel work successfully together. UK exports have grown steadily and we are now the third largest exporter to Israel and there are now over 250 Israeli companies operating in the UK.”

“There is huge potential to increase trade and investment with Israel and the Palestinian Territories,” he said. “I look forward to building on this success with the work of the UK Trade and Investment Office that facilitates international trade.”

Israel’s $550 million Noy Infrastructure and Energy Investment Fund made a commitment to invest £50 million in the UK’s renewable energy sector.

Israel’s Teva, one of the top-10 pharmaceutical companies in the world, announced a £12 million investment in clinical development in the UK and a pledge of an additional £600,000 to support research into dementia, re-affirming support for the Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge.

The British Council and Israeli government also pledged a cash injection of £1 million to help expand the British and Israeli Research and Academic Exchange Programme into new areas of research as part of the Regenerative Medicine Programme.

Unilever, the world’s largest consumer goods company, has selected Tel Aviv as the first location of a global network of Open Innovation Ports, providing a stream of cutting-edge new ideas, products and solutions back into Unilever. Israel-based Matomy Media Group, a global performance marketing company with 380 employees worldwide, announced their intention to float on the London Stock Exchange.

Israel-based AposTherapy said it would invest £10 million in the UK in the next three years. AposTherapy, which offers innovative, non-invasive and highly effective treatment for knee osteoarthritis, has recently opened a branch in Edinburgh, and intends to open branches in Bristol and the North East over the next two years. It has already created 50 jobs in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Kent and Sussex. With the assistance and support of UKTI Israel, AposTherapy intends to set up its European headquarters in the UK. The company has treated over 50,000 patients worldwide, and now has 11 centers available in four countries.

The Technology Strategy Board announced they will commit up to £5 million to work with MATIMOP, Israel’s Industry Center for Research and Development, to support innovative UK and Israeli businesses working together on research and development projects over the next five years; this will be focused on the commercialization of research in a range of key areas, such as agri-tech, water tech, medical devices, digital and cyber security. MATIMOP is the executive agency of the Office of the Chief Scientist, part of Israel’s Economy Ministry, and is the official national agency for industrial research and development cooperation in Israel. It works to support policies to build Israel’s industrial infrastructure and nurture industrial innovation and entrepreneurship by creating and implementing international cooperative industrial R&D programs between Israeli and foreign enterprises.

UKTI will also lead a roll out of the UK Tech Hub model, which was established in Israel, in select markets around the world as an innovative means of partnering British companies with the best R&D and Tech in key markets.

The British Council with the Portland Trust will bring young Palestinian entrepreneurs and business people to the UK for short placements in leading companies during the coming year. The Portland Trust is a British non-profit ‘action tank’ with offices in London, Ramallah and Tel Aviv, and was established in 2003 to promote peace and stability in the region through economic development.

On Thursday, Lord Livingston joined Cameron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Teva to discuss future collaboration with Israel and the opportunities for both UK and Israeli companies especially in innovation and technology.

Lord Livingston then went to East Jerusalem to meet Palestinian Authority Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Mohammed Mustafa and the East Jerusalem-based Office of the Quartet Representative to discuss the Initiative for the Palestinian Economy (IPE) on how to encourage economic growth. The Prime Minister also set out further UK support to create business opportunities and jobs under the PA.