Reborn shipyard pins hopes for growth on post-Brexit boom

The future of the north Devon yard bought last week by Harland & Wolff will depend partly on Boris Johnson fulfilling his promises about a string of naval contracts

It has been a lonely few months for Clifford Edwards. For the past 18 months he has been the sole employee at Appledore shipyard, near Barnstaple in north Devon.

Soon, though, Edwards will be working alongside colleagues again and the spookily quiet 118-metre dry dock will once more reverberate to the sounds of men and women toiling in heavy industry.

The prime minister assured us that he would do everything to assure a line of projects