Inmarsat CEO Rupert Pearce has joined a new trade advisory group as part of a major new business engagement drive by the UK government.

The Department of Industry and Trade (DIT) has set up 11 trade advisory groups, covering a range of key sectors, to promote world trade and economic growth from global Britain.

As CEO of the British-based world leader in global, mobile satellite communications, Rupert Pearce will play a key role in the Technology and Telecoms group. Welcoming the move, he said: “The UK is already a significant player in the global space industry and we welcome any initiatives that help drive the growth of this sector.

“We support the aims of the government’s trade advisory groups and see excellent opportunities for the UK to talk with like-minded partners in other countries to advance an open regulatory agenda around the use of satellite services. Such an agenda not only supports the UK’s growing space industry but is essential to the sustained development of a host of industries, ranging from shipping to aviation.”