Chief Executive’s Speech – October 18th 2007
1.
INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXT SETTING
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Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen. Welcome to Manchester and to the Northwest Regional Development Agency’s 8th Annual Meeting.
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I’m delighted that so many of you, our partners, could be here this morning and we will see presentations later on how we are working together to deliver the region’s economic priorities.
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I’d like to consider two areas in particular this morning.
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Firstly, I will be reviewing what the Agency and its partners have achieved over the past year.
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Secondly, I want to explain how we are continuing to change and improve, to ensure that we continue to make a real and positive impact, sub-regionally, regionally, nationally and globally.
2.
ACHIEVEMENTS AND DELIVERY
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In 2006 the region published the most focussed, and prioritised RES to date. Thank you for your support on this, particularly the prioritisation exercise based upon solid economic evidence.
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In the past year the Agency has worked to ensure delivery of the priorities set out in the RES. In particular we have focussed on those transformational actions which the region agreed could have maximum impact on sustainable economic growth. We have also produced a ‘year on’ report to ensure we are performance marking the objectives that were agreed.
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I’d now like to take you through what I consider to be some of our most significant highlights from the year.
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Our knowledge based businesses are the key to the region’s economic success.
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The Northwest has a strong research base, with significant science and innovation based sectors and clusters in Biomedical, Advanced Engineering and Energy and Environmental Technologies.
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We have continued to work to improve links between business and universities and maximise the commercial benefits of our research, making knowledge transfer a reality. The launch of the updated Northwest Science Strategy was an important milestone. The first Strategy, launched back in 2002, was
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instrumental in building the region’s impressive scientific infrastructure. The second maximises the research and commercial expertise of our universities with a focus on our key regional growth sectors.
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The National Biomanufacturing Centre at Speke, Merseyside, is a good example. Launched in November 2006, the facility is already adding value to the region’s growing biotechnology sector by enabling small companies and academic groups to bring new medicines from the research laboratory into the clinic.
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Our decision 2 years ago to make an important investment in the Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus in Halton has also been vindicated by the fact it is now home to 50 knowledge based innovation driven companies. The campus is also one example of the very good partnership working that exists between our universities in the region.
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Despite global economic pressures, significant investment by AstraZeneca in Cheshire confirms private sector confidence in the region as a place to research and develop new products and processes.
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Simplifying business support to improve access and clarity for businesses is another priority for the Agency. The landscape in the UK has been far too cluttered and I intend to make it easier to access relevant, timely business support in the Northwest. A milestone this year was the launch of Business Link Northwest, which is now providing a high-quality, consistent and targeted service for our 200,000+ small to medium sized businesses.
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Our digital and creative industries are also an important driver of growth. The creation of mediacity:uk, a RES transformational action has made excellent progress and will see the creation of the largest BBC presence outside of London.
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We expect the project, once complete, to yield over 15,000 jobs and £1 billion additional economic value over 5 years. I’m pleased to say you will hear more about this exciting project later.
SKILLS & EDUCATION
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The Northwest still does not contribute all it should to UK plc. Some £14 billion of this gap is due to productivity within the existing workforce and increasing skills levels is vital to closing the gap. We need the right provision and skills mix for business and industry now and in the future.
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The Leitch Review in December last year reaffirmed Government emphasis on knowledge-based jobs. In response to this, the Agency and its partners are investing heavily to ensure the region’s workforce can compete internationally.
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We are leading a shift from provider led learning to one led by employers in order to drive forward the integration of the skills, competitiveness and productivity agendas.
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West Cumbria will be the location for the Head Office of the newly announced National Skills Academy for Nuclear. The Nuclear Academy will help to identify and improve standards and training throughout nuclear industries across the UK.
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The new University of Cumbria will also retain skilled graduates in the area, which is vital for the future of the Cumbria economy as well as attracting new talent into the region.
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Matching education provision to the needs of business has also continued to be a clear priority. A number of projects in this area have taken significant steps forward this year, including the Macclesfield Learning Zone in Cheshire and a new campus and University Centre for Burnley College, together with the Fusion project which links Further Education Colleges to employers – ensuring that knowledge transfer is not just the province of Higher Education.
PEOPLE & JOBS
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The regeneration of our towns and cities has continued this year and the Agency is working closely with our 5 Urban Regeneration Companies to develop and implement focused masterplans to transform their areas. We continue to take the place-making agenda seriously.
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The mid-term evaluation of New East Manchester’s activities, shows the URC is making real and tangible changes to East Manchester. Key achievements to date include the construction of more than 3,400 new homes and the creation of over 3,000 jobs . If you visit the area today these dramatic changes are clear to see.
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Very recently, New East Manchester was also declared the winner of the national URC award. Congratulations on a fantastic achievement.
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Meanwhile in Barrow, thanks to West Lakes Renaissance and the Barrow Task Force, plans for the £60 million redevelopment of the town are progressing well, with the start on site of a major new business park for the area. We are also planning carefully in order to ensure there is a maximum long-term benefit for the area as a result of the new Aircraft Carrier build announcements.
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In addition, to complement the opportunities arising from nuclear decommissioning, the Agency has been using its strategic influence to improve the economic prospects of West Cumbria through the development of a spatial masterplan.
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This will act as a blueprint for future investment priorities in the area which faces some of the most significant economic challenges in this region. Government has already given its support in principle to this important plan.
INFRASTRUCTURE
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We need the most enabling infrastructure to encourage private sector investment and sustainable economic growth.
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This year has seen significant progress on important employment sites across the region. These include Luneside in Lancaster and Kingsway in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, both of which are creating jobs and attracting significant private sector investment. The first businesses should open at Kingsway in the Spring of next year and just this month planning permission for a new hotel was approved.
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As Liverpool gears up to become European Capital of Culture next year, the city’s new £19 million cruise liner facility will provide a major boost for the region’s tourism industry, putting Merseyside and the Northwest on the map as a major international cruise destination. We already have strong bookings for 2008.
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Along with the progress of the new arena and convention centre, Canal Link and Museum, these magnificent, transformational projects will fundamentally change Liverpool’s visitor economy, bringing in more wealth generating ‘business tourism’ to the city and acting as a legacy for Capital of Culture.
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As well as the built environment, the Agency has also invested in improving the region’s green spaces. The Newlands regeneration project is continuing to create thriving natural landscapes. Four years on and several hundred hectares of community woodland later, I’m pleased to see the programme drawing praise from central Government and the private sector. The programme is reaching its peak this year with an additional £36 million investment by the Agency.
QUALITY OF LIFE
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One of our most rewarding roles at the Agency is to shout loudly about our regional strengths to people around the UK and the world. During the year we have worked hard to showcase the region’s cultural offer and our uniquely diverse natural assets.
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This year’s Manchester International Festival was a huge success with over 300,000 local, national and international visitors descending on the city – double the predicted visitor numbers.
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The Northwest is also capitalising on its reputation for hosting major events and making sure that they bring economic impact to the region. This year alone, major events which the Agency helped to secure generated £18 million for our economy.
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In addition, the Northwest played host to other key success stories in the national and international events calendar. Examples include last year’s Open Golf at Hoylake to which UK Broadcasters devoted more than £1.25 million worth of airtime, and the Grand National at Aintree.
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Liverpool 08 offers a once in a lifetime opportunity to showcase the city and Merseyside to the rest of the world and you will hear more later from one its key events which opens tomorrow, the Turner Prize, held outside of London for the first time.
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I hope that I have given you a good overview of some of the work that the Agency has led, developed or instigated in the last year. The quality of our results really speak for themselves. For the 2006/07 financial year, the NWDA has: o
created or safeguarded over 20,000 new jobs in the region,
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created or attracted over 3,000 new businesses to the region;
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helped 24,000 businesses to improve their performance;
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attracted £373 million of investment to regenerate deprived areas;
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regenerated 300 hectares of brownfield land;
o and helped over 26,000 people in their skills development.
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Whilst meeting our targets is important, it is also vital that we measure our performance and contribution in other ways. Last year the National Audit Office carried out an independent performance assessment of our organisational capacity and performance. This resulted in the overall grade of “Performing Strongly” – the highest rating available. Of course, there are areas for improvement and we continue to work hard on this to ensure that we move to even higher levels of performance.
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Accountability of the work of the Agency to Government, the private sector and the public sector in this year is very important and has this year moved to a new level. The professional and very focussed work of the Regional Assembly with their statutory scrutiny function has greatly assisted us here, particularly considering the Agency’s role in delivering the RES, which is of course a partnership activity.
3. POLICY DEVELOPMENT / STRATEGIC ISSUES
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While we have seen significant progress ‘on the ground’, this year has also been a critical year for the region in policy terms. I have already mentioned the progress made on transformational actions but the Agency has also worked with partners across the region on a number of strategic issues.
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The region now has strong sub-regional partnerships in place, reflecting the economic geography of the Northwest. They have clear action plans to improve economic performance based on cross boundary working. This is why our structures bode well for the challenges that have been laid down to the region and the Agency in the Government’s Sub National Review.
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I very much welcome the introduction of one integrated regional strategy for economic development, planning, housing and transport. Government has listened to how we do things in the Northwest and reflected the strong enabling partnerships we have in place.
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There is a huge amount of work to do on this but I am confident we are travelling in the right direction. We will build upon the positive relationships we have with both local government and the Regional Assembly.
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Increasingly, I believe we are all beginning to recognise it’s not about who holds power, it’s about how we work together to deliver more.
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The Northwest is setting the pace for these new ways of working. With a stronger role for RDAs and Local Authorities, we now have a clear signal from Government that it believes Northwest partners themselves are best able to agree and deliver regional investment priorities. This is not just the rhetoric of devolution, but devolution in action.
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The introduction of Regional Ministers will help to ensure that the Northwest’s voice is heard in Westminster, whilst also strengthening the accountability of organisations like the NWDA to the very people we represent. On that note, I am delighted to welcome our Northwest Minister, Beverley Hughes, to the region today who we will hear more from later.
4.
KEY CHALLENGES FOR 2007/8
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Whilst we have continued to deliver for the region, meeting and often exceeding our targets from Government, we have also set ourselves a strong challenge to continually improve our performance. I’d now like to explain a little about how we as an Agency intend to build on this and work differently to meet the challenges ahead.
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We will continue to increase evaluation of past activity, to better inform future investment. With evaluation a key issue for Ministers, the Agency has already taken a lead in this area for Regional Development Agencies on a national level. We and Government will expect partners to do the same, to ensure the region knows what works. This will be vital in improving the delivery of projects and informing future investment decisions.
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The Comprehensive Spending Review means we have significant cashable efficiencies to make. Partners will have to do the same and we must work together to deliver more for less. It is right that we all have to do more to demonstrate that our investments are delivering value for money.
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The transfer of European Regional Development Funds to the Agency is an important milestone for the region. This is likely to be the last significant ERDF programme, and the region must ensure resources are aligned with economic priorities and used for measured impact. The NWDA will ensure that all systems and processes are in place for delivery to run smoothly.
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As I have said, we will continue to simplify and improve business support. We have made serious headway in this area through Business Link Northwest, however I am committed to ensuring that we play our part in helping to reduce the number of business support services nationally from 3,000 to 100 by 2010.
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Our region is diverse not just in its geography but in its demography too. One of the most challenging tasks of all those is to ensure economic growth benefits all parts of the community. Jobs and opportunities must be accessible to people from all backgrounds. We will work with partners to rejuvenate the region’s Equality and Diversity Strategy and ensure this is central to all of our work and programmes.
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Blackpool’s regeneration and economic growth continues to be a priority. Working closely with both ReBlackpool and Government Office the Agency has established a Regeneration Taskforce. An Action
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Plan for the sustainable development of the town has since been submitted to Government and, if recommendations are taken forward, could lever £3 billion in private sector investment.
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We must also work with our Northern partners to focus our joint efforts on those things that will make the biggest contribution to economic growth.
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We will keep the North’s economic strategy prioritised on three areas of activity – transport, innovation in industry and levering in more private sector investment. We know that economics don’t stop at local boundaries so working across these traditional borders will be important for all of us in the future.
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And finally, with 2008 only now a matter of weeks away, Capital of Culture also enters a critical period, having recently announced its programme of events for the year. The Agency will be working closely with the Culture Company to ensure that we seize the wider economic benefits of next year and that we deliver a Capital of Culture that the UK can be proud of.
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With these challenges ahead, my personal commitment is to ensure the Agency itself has the right skills, structure, policies and investment priorities to deliver real economic change on your behalf.
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In particular, we will work with partners to implement the Government’s Sub National Review and ensure that our investment is aligned to clear priorities.
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Collectively as a region we are working hard to do this, but I will continue to ensure we are focused on making the right decisions for our economy and our future.
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In short, a good year with many challenges ahead. Complacency is not in our vocabulary, or mindset.
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Without further ado, I will now pass you over to Jim and presentations from our partners. I do hope that you enjoy the event.
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Thank you.
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