May 25th 2018 I was fortunate enough to attend the Brexit North summit in Leeds on Monday run by IPPR North and CityREDI, a research institute based at the University of Birmingham. The day, unsurprisingly, focussed on Brexit, but most striking thing that I took away was the shocking statistics about the state of the UK economy which were shared by economist Prof. Philip McCann, of the University of Sheffield. McCann stated that from the economic analysis point of view the UK is an outlier as a single country and instead the analysis of the UK makes sense if we view the UK as 3 different countries. The super-successful London and surrounding area in the South East, Scotland and the rest of the UK. As a whole this means that, despite the overwhelming success of London as a global centre of business, the UK’s standing in the world economic rankings as a whole has only overtaken 1 country, New Zealand, in the past 30 years, whilst being lapped by many other developing economies. This fragmentation of the UK economy has been in process since the 1970s when the UK was dubbed the ‘sick man of Europe’. And it goes without saying that whilst it’s true that this economic decline in most of the UK has taken place whilst we’ve been in the EU, the success of London and other areas, such as East Germany, where post-1990 many regions have been more productive than the North of England, shows that the two are not correlated. In fact, in the whole of the Eurozone, productivity variations are no bigger than those within the UK. We all know the UK is an unequal place, but snippets like this bring home that fact that clearly all has not been well. And so we get to Brexit, which by and large the attendees and speakers on Monday were in broad agreement is not the solution to these problems, and cruelly for many of those so-called ‘left behind’ communities that are the reality behind the leave vote statistics, things are likely to be made worse unless something drastic is done. The answer posed on Monday was that devolution of powers and resources away from Westminster and closer to communities is the only way to mitigate the potential negative effects of Brexit and improve opportunity and outcomes for those living outside of London. But with Westminister hesitant to give sufficient powers and resources away to even strong city region economies such as Manchester, it seems a long way before the North truly ‘takes back control’. ALEX EAGLE, Quatro North, 07427 228288 Yet another GDPR updateWe've updated our privacy policyQuatro Public Relations take data protection and privacy very seriously. We have updated our privacy notice to fully comply with GDPR as a data processor. You can read our updated policy here http://www.quatro-pr.co.uk/privacy You don't have to do anything to keep receiving our emails, and as always, if you want to unsubscribe you can do so via the link on the bottom of this email. Economy & SkillsScience and innovation renaissance will drive Liverpool City Region’s local industrial strategyLiverpool Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram hailed the Liverpool City Region as “undergoing a renaissance in science and innovation”, at this year’s Business of Science Conference. Mr Rotheram brought the one-day conference to a close by announcing his “big vision” for the city. Booming tech sector has positive impact on Northern economyA project looking into the State of the Region across Yorkshire and the North West has this month focused on tech and its driving force in the north. The UK’s digital tech sector continues to accelerate faster than the rest of the economy, according to a landmark ‘state of the nation’ report. Expansive Liverpool BID sets out five-year planWith its levy-paying members set to vote next month on a further five-year term, Liverpool BID Company has launched its business plan for the Retail & Leisure business improvement district, including its intent to expand the district’s boundaries. Ahead of June’s postal ballot, the organisation has released a plan outlining a £5m investment plan covering improving safety and cleanliness, along with boosting footfall through events and space animation. Planning and DevelopmentDetailed consent for first phase of £300m cultural district schemeDetailed planning permission has been granted for the first phase of a £300m mixed-use scheme in Leeds' cultural district. Phase 1 of Caddick Development's flagship SOYO scheme is to be brought forward by Moda, a developer and operator of private rented apartments across the UK. Outgoing Preston chief executive praises city ‘dynamism’Today is Preston City Council chief executive Lorraine Norris’s final day before she retires after nine years in the post, handing over to interim Adrian Phillips. Place North West talks to Norris about her legacy, Preston’s progress, and Lancashire’s chance for devolution. These are the eight plans that could change the face of WirralThese are the eight important plans that could change the face of Wirral, with every one of them potentially being rubber stamped by the council’s planning committee next week. The plans include a 130-apartment block, built seven storeys high and boasting rooftop gardens, as well as controversial proposals to build more than 200 homes on the site of a former Bromborough school site. Approval secured for redevelopment of Manchester's Old Granada StudiosPlans to revamp the Old Granada Studios have received revised planning consent from Manchester City Council. Allied London’s revised application will see studios 02, 06, 08 and 12 retained and refurbished to provide a suite of multi-functional filming, production and studio facilities. Plans revealed for job-creating Burnley business parkPlans for a new business park in Burnley, which could bring up to 1,300 jobs to the town, have been revealed. The proposals are designed to build on the existing Burnley Bridge and Titanium Park developments. To date, the masterplan off the M65 carriageway has yielded more than £50m of investment to surrounding area. Transport & InfrastructureManchester’s trams are getting their own concentric fare zonesImagine you have a tram network with two stops on it. There's really only one journey you can do – I mean, you can do it in two directions, but that’s the same distance, so we can assume it’s the same fare. That means that, ignoring all that complicated stuff like child fares and other discounts, then there'll be a single journey. Now let's add a third stop to the network. Now there are three possible routes: A-B, A-C, B-C. So, that’s three fares. With a fourth stop, there are six, as you're adding travelling between D and those three earlier destinations. With five stops it's another four, so 10; with six, it's another five, so 15. Tees Valley Mayor urges £100m scheme forward to 'transform' Darlington stationToday (May 17), Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen pushed the case for a £100m scheme to transform Darlington station in a meeting with transport secretary, Chris Grayling. The ambitious project will see a major overhaul of the station and reconfiguration of rail track to ensure the station is able to accommodate new high speed services on the East Coast Main Line, while also unlocking capacity on the local rail line. Manchester Airport confirms route to India's economic capitalManchester Airport has confirmed both its – and the North's – first direct flight to the economic capital of India. Jet Airways will begin flying to Mumbai later this year, with the route tipped to yield a major economic boost to the northern economy. The four-times-a-week service will go live ahead of the annual Diwali festival. 'Hugely exciting': Drax to test carbon capture technology at North Yorkshire biomass plantDrax and C-Capture say North Yorkshire pilot could be the 'first of several' in the UK aimed at delivering negative emissions. Drax is set to pilot Europe's first biomass carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, having today announced a partnership with CCS specialists from the University of Leeds to pilot "new technology" at its North Yorkshire power plant. Congestion deal vital to solve region’s transport problems – Andy BurnhamMetro Mayor Andy Burnham says a ‘congestion deal’ is vital to revolutionise the region’s transport system. Speaking at last night’s Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce annual dinner, he set out his “big vision for business and industry” in Greater Manchester, with transport a key element. Northern InnovatorsPerkbox announces Sheffield office expansionPerkbox, the employee benefits platform, has announced a series of initiatives in its Sheffield team designed to provide the additional capacity required for the company’s anticipated business growth. The Sheffield team, which began life early last year and is now 55 people strong will today relocate from Scotland Street to Saville Street in order to accommodate the needs of the growing team.
North West is at the heart of industrious revolutionLeading tech entrepreneur Lawrence Jones believes momentum is building as the North West cements its place as the centre of what he describes as “the Industrious Revolution”. However, he warns there is a major challenge in creating the pipeline of talent needed to drive that revolution – and in particular attracting women to careers in the tech sector. How Newcastle's Northstar Ventures is creating new opportunities with an ageing populationA new innovation and networking group is launching in Newcastle this week which will look at both the challenges and opportunities within our increasingly ageing population. The global innovation platform, Aging 2.0, is launching its Newcastle Chapter this Thursday (May 24), the second in the UK after London. Politics‘Northern Powerhouse has made Manchester the London of the North’ - Lord PrescottThe Northern Powerhouse has made Manchester ‘the London of the North’, former deputy prime minister Lord Prescott has claimed. The former Hull East MP told The Yorkshire Post that Manchester was soaking up the majority of the benefits of devolved spending and power in the North of England and that Yorkshire needed to develop its own strategy to benefit from a changing industrial landscape. Burnham calls for 'moment of change'Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has called for the region's business community to help make the turbulent times of the present a "moment of change", adding that the area has a "window of opportunity we will never get back". Speaking at the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner, Burnham touched on a number of subjects and outlined his ambitions for the region to "go up a level", attracting new business and nurturing existing start-ups and. UK risks becoming ‘splintered’ if more powers are not devolved to regions, warns northern metro mayorThe Government risks “splintering” the country if it fails to deliver further devolution in the English regions where large numbers of people voted for Brexit, a northern metro mayor has warned. Steve Rotheram, who was elected as mayor of the Liverpool City Region last year, told a conference in Leeds today that transferring power from Westminster “could go a long way in helping to heal the rifts that divide our society.” Councils unite in backing 'One North Wales'Six council leaders from across North Wales are supporting the #backthebid campaign to secure a £1.3bn boost for the region to drive economic growth. Leaders of all six local authorities – Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham – are united behind the North Wales Growth Bid. ‘Ruthless’ Jarvis will fight for One YorkshireDan Jarvis has promised to be “ruthless” in ensuring Yorkshire wins powers and money from Westminster and unites under one mayor. Talking tough in his first major press interview since being elected Sheffield City Region mayor, the ex-paratrooper told The Yorkshire Post: “I’m not mucking about”. Arts & CultureDinner, supper or tea? This is how the country refers to their evening mealFrom Brexit to how to properly pronounce the word ‘scone’, there are a number of topics that divide England when brought up in conversation. However, few prove as divisive as the question of how best to describe the last meal of the day. Newcastle Quayside set to receive £100m observation wheel larger than the London EyeDevelopers have announced plans to build Europe’s tallest observation wheel on Newcastle Quayside in a project that could see more than £100m invested in the city with 550 jobs created. Standing 140 metres high, the observation wheel - dubbed ‘The Whey Aye’ in celebration of its location - will be five metres taller than the London Eye. Inside Liverpool's booming restaurant sceneOngoing regeneration and a thriving independent scene has helped Liverpool top the table of growth in the UK’s restaurant and bar scene. Opinion & ResearchLiverpool’s economy has grown quicker than you think – but what’s the matter with Leeds?A couple of weeks back in this slot, I made a shocking discovery. Since 1998, measured on the size of the economy as a whole, the fastest growing non-capital among Britain’s major cities had been Liverpool. This result runs so against the received wisdom that I dedicated a second article entirely to exploring possible explanations for the disparity. ‘The power of brand Yorkshire is needed during time of Brexit uncertainty’The power of “brand Yorkshire” will be a major asset in promoting the region internationally at a time of uncertainty caused by Brexit, a major business event was told. Dan Fell, the chief executive of Doncaster Chamber, said he was continuing to press for a Yorkshire-wide devolution deal because his members believed it would make it more likely that the Government would listen to the region. Opinion: what next for our Metro Mayor?Steve Gillingham, director for the North at Mace, the construction company, analyses Andy Burnham's achievements after a year in office and what challenges remain. Gordon Wakeford: The rail industrial revolutionGordon Wakeford, managing director of the Siemens Mobility Division, explains how the company plans to make Yorkshire the base for the new UK rail industrial revolution. |