Facebook is looking to augment its position in the UK. The company is planning to hire 500 more UK employees in the coming year. The new recruitment will increase its headcount in the country by 50 percent. The social networking company currently has 1,000 employees in the UK.

Facebook made this announcement at the annual conference of the Confederation of British Industry.

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"Many of those new roles will be high skilled engineering jobs as the UK is home to our largest engineering base outside of the US," Nicola Mendelsohn, Facebook's vice-president of Europe, Middle East, and Africa said. The company noted that it started its operations in the UK with "just a handful of people."

Facebook has some major projects under development in the UK. Earlier, it developed Workplace tool. The company is currently working on a solar-powered unmanned delivery drone called Aquila, at its facility located in Somerset. Mendelsohn said that the UK is one of the best places for a tech company.

The company's announcement has been welcomed by the UK Prime Minister Theresa May. She said that the Facebook's plan highlights the standing of the UK as a good place for investment. London Mayor Sadiq Khan added that London remains "open to talent, innovation and entrepreneurship from all four corners of the world."

London is fast becoming an attractive hub for technology companies. Recently, Google announced the development of its new headquarter in the city. The company has also pledged to recruit 3,000 more people in the country. Other major tech companies such as Apple and Amazon are also likely to follow suit.

Facebook is currently dealing with fake news controversy in the United States. The company has launched some new features to curtail the number of unsubstantiated news posted on the website. Facebook plans to open its new London office by the end of 2017.