THE Business Secretary has promised to look into cutting the red tape delaying a multi-million-pound upgrade of Southampton’s container port.

Vince Cable told city MP John Denham he believes ports hold a major key to helping stimulate growth in the nation’s ailing economy.

And he vowed to look into the bureaucratic hold-ups to the £150m privately-funded scheme to allow Southampton to handle the next generation of supersized container ships.

The project, which would create and safeguard 2,000 jobs, has been delayed because of a legal challenge from a rival port operator.

Lib Dem Mr Cable said he would follow-up an inquiry from Mr Denham, the Southampton Itchen MP, who is still awaiting a response from David Cameron to a plea to help free the scheme from “bureaucratic paralysis”.

He called on the Tory Prime Minister to back up repeated promises from ministers to support socalled “shovel ready”

schemes that could boost local economies.

Hutchinson Ports, which owns Felixstowe Port, applied for a judicial review of a decision to give the goahead for major works to develop Southampton’s berths 201 and 202 into a new 500m quay wall.

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO), a public body which issued the required environmental consent to ABP Southampton in February, decided not to defend the challenge, agreeing the effects of the project had not been fully examined, including the impacts on traffic in Southampton and beyond.

Mr Denham asked the Business Secretary to intervene during a Commons debate.

He said: “Instead of creating and supporting 2,000 or more jobs, this project is mired in red tape, in DEFRA, and its agencies.

Would the Secretary of State speak to his colleagues and try to get this vital project under way?”

Mr Cable responded: “Yes, I will certainly do that.

“That seems a very helpful intervention to me. As he knows, in the Growth Review, logistics including ports were a major part of our work. A lot is now happening to open up British ports and invest in them, and I will certainly pursue his enquiry.”