Malaysian government invests £2bn to accelerate UK’s biggest brownfield scheme

A new trade deal agreed between the British and Malaysian governments earlier this week confirmed a £2bn investment to speed up the delivery of the Brabazon new town in the West of England.

The development, which will be built by Malaysian company YTL, will be based on the former Filton Airfield near Bristol. Filton airfield was the birthplace of Concorde and supersonic travel, with the scheme named Brabazon after the Bristol Brabazon airliner.

The investment was announced at a YTL UK event in London, with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the mayor of the West of England, Dan Norris, in attendance. Norris confirmed plans to accelerate the delivery of the Brabazon rail station to open in 2026.

Alongside 6,500 new homes, of which 1,700 will be affordable, the scheme will deliver its landmark building YTL Arena Bristol, which will have a capacity of over 17,000.

There will also be 2,000 beds for student accommodation, three new schools, a higher education research campus, laboratories and over 86 acres of public space including up to three million sq ft of commercial space and the largest new public park in the South West for half a century.

The scheme’s masterplan, which was designed by Bath-based architect Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and Grant Associates, was approved last March.

Others involved in the development include US firms JRDV International and SWA Group as well as Malaysia-based YTL Construction Design Group.

Norris said: “An even smoother trading relationship with Malaysia will only help accelerate plans for Bristol’s long-awaited arena, as well as more new homes on the former Filton Airfield. YTL remain committed to investing in our part of the world and their latest £2bn plans will be a further real boost for the region – delivering more than 30,000 jobs.

“My Mayoral Combined Authority supports building homes in the right place with the right infrastructure. The new train station will be crucial for helping people get to the UK’s third largest arena and get around the West of England.”