Rebalancing the UK economy Defining the Northern Powerhouse post-brexit

Transcription

1 Rebalancing the UK economy Defining the Northern Powerhouse post-brexit

2 Contents Foreword 3 Turning a slogan into action 5 Joining up the dots 9 What Brexit means to the North 11 Devo deals and elected mayors 13 Building the powerhouse brand 16 Roundtable attendees 19

3 Foreword The Northern Powerhouse is home to 10.7 million people, a quarter of which live in the Manchester City Region, and 21% in West Yorkshire Combined Authority. In these pages we aim to discern exactly what has changed in the North in the two and a half years since the phrase Northern Powerhouse; was first uttered by then Chancellor George Osborne and, perhaps more importantly, what should and will happen next particularly in Theresa May s post-brexit era. Certainly, the North must ensure its place at the negotiating table as we take the nation out of the European Union. The transport agenda is inextricably linked to the Northern Powerhouse and crucial to leveraging the opportunity presented: greater connectivity means access to an enlarged talent pool, better logistics, and improved ease and speed of doing business. On rail, never mind HS2, the clear message from businesses is that improved east-west rail links will have significant impact. While one of the criticisms levied at the Northern Powerhouse is that it is too much rhetoric, not enough real action certain parts of the North have taken the ball and run with the opportunity presented by devolution. In the North West both Manchester and Liverpool have done devo deals, taking some powers back from Whitehall. In Yorkshire the debate continues but there are signs Leeds is slowly coming around to the idea too. TheBusinessDesk.com is proud to have worked with Eversheds on this report the culmination of a year-long project we have worked on together. This has included detailed surveys of our readership across the North the results of which you will see in the infographics dotted throughout the report as well as round table discussion events held at Eversheds offices in both Manchester and Leeds and attended by senior business people and decision makers from across the North. We hope you find this report interesting and useful. Joanne Birtwistle Editor, TheBusinessDesk.com Northern Powerhouse key facts UK population (%) 16.7 Share of GB jobs, 2013 (%) 16.0 Share of total UK GVA, 2013 (%) 13.3 Share of jobs that are knowledge-intensive, 2013 (%) Number of universities 23 Source: Centre for Cities 3

4

5 Turning a slogan into action Actions speak louder than words. Business leaders on both sides of the Pennines say the Northern Powerhouse must turn rhetoric into reality or risk losing its credibility. Former Chancellor George Osborne, one of the chief architects of the concept, has declared that the Powerhouse isn t just a slogan. Speaking recently Osborne added: The big goal here is to try turn around something that blighted our country for 100 years, which is the North/South divide, and it can t be done overnight. However, business leaders on both sides of the Pennines believe it is now time to push the agenda forward and get projects and plans moving. A new survey also has also highlighted the gap that exists between the Northern Powerhouse concept and businesses believing it can deliver for them. The poll, carried out for The BusinessDesk. com with Eversheds, found that most business leaders quizzed understood and supported the Powerhouse aims. But only 38% of those who took part in the survey expect their business to benefit from the Northern Powerhouse agenda as it stands. And 33% didn t expect to see any benefit, with 29% stating they didn t know. Charlie Cornish is Chief Executive of Manchester Airports Group (MAG) and is also involved with the new Northern Powerhouse Partnership a think tank bringing together Northern business leaders and politicians, which is chaired by Osborne. He says simply: We have to move the agenda. Most people would buy into the aims of the Northern Powerhouse. What is important as time goes on is that we are able to translate that high level vision into a set of tangible plans that people can understand. That s the bridge we have to cross. We have to go away from the vision, the rhetoric, into hard deliverables. He adds: If the concept doesn t translate into better trade, better infrastructure, that brand will be tainted. It s important the North and Westminster actually get the Northern Powerhouse moving forward and get projects off the ground. Warren Marshall, Group Planning Director at Peel Ports Group, agrees. He says: It s not the first time the North has come together. There used to be the Northern Way which fizzled away when Labour lost power. 38% Only 38% of those who took part in the survey expect their business to benefit from the Northern Powerhouse agenda as it stands. 5

6 14% 24% 62% Would you support tax raising powers and greater local control of budgets if proceeds were ring-fenced for the Northern economy? Don t know No Yes That said I think the North is starting to come together a lot better than it used to. The brand, the momentum behind the Northern Powerhouse, has certainly got all the civic leaders talking to each other. For our part we are collaborating with our Northern port competitors on the east coast of the country. We have come together to work with our competitors on a common agenda, which is to fight for a better North. We need to focus on deliverables and accelerate. It s what we can deliver. Otherwise it will lose its credibility if nothing really happens of any substance. Tom Bridgford, Partner at Eversheds in Manchester, echoes some of the findings of the Businessdesk.com survey. He says: A lot of clients say it s a great concept, It needs to be more than just a talking shop, it needs to have some tangible deliverables and quickly or it will fizzle out. The view is the same east of the Pennines. Guy Parker, Senior Policy Advisor at the CBI, also believes the business community is now looking for more from the Powerhouse. And he says the government has to play its part in that needed delivery. He says: I feel the biggest challenge for the Northern Powerhouse is maintaining the momentum in increasingly difficult economic times, ensuring that we actually get the investment that will make a real impact in the long-term. There s been huge goodwill and from the business community in the North a real appetite to be involved in shaping what the Northern Powerhouse could be. But that goodwill will only last as long as the business community also sees commitment from government. Gerald Jennings, President of Leeds Chamber of Commerce, sees another challenge ahead for the Powerhouse project. He says that small businesses have yet to be engaged with the concept, despite all the talk around it. He adds: When we talk to our members they don t really understand what this Northern Powerhouse thing is, then you get into devolution. That just confuses them even more. There s a sense of, I m going to carry on doing what I do the best I can, with all the challenges I ve have got and if this Northern Powerhouse arrives and devolution comes, fine, but it s not really going to affect what I m doing. Jennings goes on: There s a real danger if we don t engage across the whole business community that we will leave it to the bigger businesses to dictate to the rest of us what s going on. Guy Parker says the issues of real importance to his members are business support for exporters, increasing the level of skills across the North and improving transport links to make it easier to get from Manchester to Leeds and beyond. That s what our members care about, he says. If the Northern Powerhouse is a vehicle to deliver that, they ll get on board with it. Craig Burrow, Regional Director of Property group Bruntwood, goes on: The Northern Powerhouse needs to define itself in order to get that full engagement from the business community. Is it a badge or a movement, what is it? Cornish adds: It s a long-term plan but there has to be a push to get investment quicker. Any economist in the world will tell you infrastructure investment is the key to unlocking economic development. 6

7 Alison Oldfield, Eversheds - Yorkshire roundtable He describes the length of time infrastructure projects such as HS2 and HS3 have been on the table as ludicrous. And he goes on: One of the challenges for the North is to actually get Westminster to free that decision making up, free the funding up We have to have a strategic vision and belief that investment will bring economic development. Mark Robson, Regional Director of the Department of International Trade, agrees the Powerhouse needs to be about something and not just a brand. He adds: I think we are moving into that phase but it takes a while to deliver these things. However there remains that growing belief that the pace has to be picked up. Dominic Gibbons is managing director of Yorkshirebased commercial property developer Wykeland Group. He says there is a sense of frustration developing in the private sector about the pace of the Powerhouse, along with concerns the North could miss the boat. He points out other parts of the country, including the Midlands, are now starting to raise their profiles and he adds: Other agendas will come along. The window is small, there is an opportunity there but it won t last for ever. Professor Peter Slee, Vice Chancellor at Leeds Beckett University, says: The biggest challenge for the Northern Powerhouse is actually thinking big enough. It s having a proper vision as opposed to a notion of incremental growth. There is a big opportunity I think. Looking at global economics, growth is in medium sized cities. It s where it s happening all over the United States and Europe. We have got a good base for growth; we have just got to take it. He believes collaboration is the key and worries about the Northern cities competing against each other rather than working together. Prof Slee adds: The first bit of the ambition should be that Northern Powerhouse isn t about rebalancing the economy, it s about North playing full part in the growth of the economy by improving productivity. There needs to be a rethink of the vision about what we are trying to do. He also believes there are opportunities around what he calls the Northern pound, cultivating growth through supply chains and the use of local companies to keep more money in Hull and Leeds. That s the sort of thing I want to be working up into the vision, he adds. He is worried about more competition between cities in the North rather than more working together to power forward. Alison Oldfield, Partner at Eversheds, says taking the opportunity is crucial. She believes the challenge in a post-brexit vote world is to not get distracted and to keep focused on implementing and delivering. She says: We have got a huge opportunity to make a difference in a more inclusive and connected region in a way that is desperately needed to redress the balance which is growing between us and London. Luke Raikes is Head of Transport for think tank IPPR North. He says: The Northern Powerhouse, if it is sustained by the new government, which is very important, will hopefully reap dividends. However, echoing the former Chancellor he stresses that here are no quick fixes: It will take years and years to see some measureable difference in the Northern economy, it is a long-term task. The great value of the Northern Powerhouse is how it enables many aspects of the North to work together. There s been huge goodwill and from the business community in the North a real appetite to be involved in shaping what the Northern Powerhouse could be. But that goodwill will only last as long as the business community also sees commitment from government. Guy Parker, Senior Policy Advisor, CBI There s a sense of, I m going to carry on doing what I do the best I can, with all the challenges I ve have got and if this Northern Powerhouse arrives and devolution comes, fine, but it s not really going to affect what I m doing. Gerald Jennings, President of Leeds Chamber of Commerce There is a big opportunity I think. Looking at global economics, growth is in medium sized cities. It s where it s happening all over the United States and Europe. We have got a good base for growth; we have just got to take it. Professor Peter Slee, Vice Chancellor, Leeds Beckett University The great value of the Northern Powerhouse is how it enables many aspects of the North to work together. Luke Raikes, Head of Transport for think tank IPPR North 7

8 xxxxx xxxx

9 Joining up the dots Connectivity remains the real key to unlocking the full, untapped potential of the North, according to business leaders from across the region. He points out that it can take two hours to get from Leeds to Manchester by road on a good day. That vision of shrinking the North in terms of travel time is absolutely critical because you get a better movement of goods, people and services, he says. That whole essence of there s a Manchester and there s a Leeds disappears, It becomes more like the Greater North. Roundtable discussion in Manchester Improving transport links and bringing the cities of the north closer together to boost and develop economy growth was the raison d etre behind the original concept of the Northern Powerhouse. The prize for linking up the cities and creating a globally competitive region still remains great. The Northern Independent Economic Review, commissioned by Transport for the North, revealed the potential to add 97bn and 850,000 more jobs to the UK by And transport and connectivity was the number one issue for improving the economy of the North amongst business leaders in the businessdesk.com survey on rebalancing the UK economy, carried out with Eversheds. Mark Robson, Regional Director of the Department of International Trade and a member of a recently created team looking at inward investment and the Northern Powerhouse, sums it up when he says: The biggest problem is connectivity. This is really important across the North. Charlie Cornish, Chief Executive of Manchester Airport Group and a member of the recently created Northern Powerhouse Partnership think tank also says the question of improving transport links is crucial. He adds: Ultimately you need the UK joined up like the major economies of China and Germany. All their major cities are connected because they believe in the principal of trade and movement. In common with other business leaders Cornish believes the HS2 and HS3 rail projects should be starting now and completed in parallel. And he is frustrated by the delays and length of time needed to get nationally important infrastructure and transport projects like this off the drawing board. We need to grow the North s economy and then HS2 arrives in Manchester in 2033 according to the latest estimates. That s just ludicrous. For Stephen Miller, MD of Bank of America Merill Lynch in Chester, it s not just about getting faster rail links to the capital. He believes HS2 is 50 years too late and points out that it can take him as long to get from Chester to Manchester as it does to get to London. Those poor road and rail links, directly impacts on our ability to hire. A huge pool of talent sits all around us, which can t get to us and we can t distribute out into that network. 9

10 that should give government the confidence they need to reciprocate or accelerate. Craig Burrow, Bruntwood Regional Director, also believes there is a need to push forward with connectivity projects with more urgency. He says: A further challenge is the speed at which some of the infrastructure projects could be brought forward and could be delivered to truly, physically connect better those locations. However, according to Gerald Jennings, President of Leeds Chamber of Commerce, the issue now is not just about speed of delivery. He says: I ve started to pick up that central government is starting to query already the level of investment needed in transport in this part of the world. They didn t do that with Crossrail in London. Roy Barry, Eversheds and Tim Newns, MIDAS Manchester roundtable He says the focus needs to be on east-west links as well as digital connectivity and he adds: The physical and line of site internet connectivity we have here is shocking and that really needs to be addressed. Luke Raikes, Head of Transport at think tank IPPR North, also says that transport links within the North s cities need to be improved and points out that London has been able to invest more in its infrastructure. And Ian McCarthy, director of the International Festival for Business, adds another connectivity issue to the lengthening list, describing the access from some of the North s medium-sized towns into its city centres as, just absolutely dreadful. Paul Brodrick, Head of Connected Communities at engineering group Siemens, believes that a joined up approach is needed, to link these areas of the North. He says: One of the benefits of everyone working together is to look at the infrastructure, how do we you make these places more connected? There are lot of skills dotted around not just in the major cities. Warren Marshall of Peel Ports says that the private sector is investing huge sums of money in Northern infrastructure or Northern capability as he describes it. He says: Our plea to government is the private sector is willing to invest in infrastructure in the future, will you please sort out the antiquated road and rail infrastructure. Also highlighting the large difference between the amounts spent on transport in London and the North of England, which he describes as disgraceful, he adds: The Department for Transport is almost asking us to negotiate against ourselves. There is something about the need to balance the economy. This part of the world does need to play a fuller part. But we can only do that if we have the right infrastructure. We are not making enough noise about this. We doff our cap to our paymasters in Whitehall and Westminster and that s wrong. Alison Oldfield, Partner at Eversheds, says: There is some politics in just shouting a little bit louder. Dominic Gibbons, MD of Wykeland Group, believes cutting the travel time between Leeds and Manchester could be a big ticket early win for the Northern Powerhouse. He sees mobility of skills as crucial to improving the North s economic prospects. It s a point taken up by Andrew Todd, Partner at Eversheds, who says: If you did a survey outside Leeds Station and asked what would make you work in Manchester, the answer would be to get their within 30 minutes. He adds that along with connectivity, the North has other areas where improvement is needed. The biggest challenge is residential development, places for people to live. We feel there s a dire need. If one looks at the expansion plans within NP where will people live to deliver those opportunities? There are things going in the North. The private sector is putting money into their infrastructure for the future and 10

11 What Brexit means to the North Delivering the Northern Powerhouse vision is more important than ever following the UK s Brexit vote, according to business leaders across the region. And they stress it is also vital that the region has a place at the table during the negotiations to take the nation out of the European Union. Charlie Cornish, Chief Executive of Manchester Airports Group says the Brexit vote has made the Northern Powerhouse absolutely essential. He said: I don t care what anyone says; Brexit in the medium-term is not good news for the UK, so we need to make these big decisions and get investment moving, just to counter the impact. Warren Marshall, Group Planning Director at Peel Ports, says the vote has caused uncertainty and a united front is needed. He says: We have to come together as the North to try and sell our opportunities to overseas investment, because if we show any sense of being not on same page then the investment will go somewhere else. Paul Brodrick, Head of Connected Communities at engineering giant Siemens, which has its head office in Germany, believes getting some certainty around the Northern Powerhouse and what it actually means will be important in the Brexit future. He believes it is something we can focus on in terms of credibility. For Tim Newns, Chief Executive of Manchester inward investment agency Midas, it is also about keeping the momentum going. He says anything that can counter the uncertainty is absolutely critical. Stephen Miller, MD of Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Chester, believes that the North and other regions face having their views and needs overlooked during the negotiations. He warns that the capital s financial sector has a very pure laser-like focus on what it needs to get out of the Brexit deal and adds: I strongly doubt much consideration will be given to the impact on the rest of the UK. He adds: One thing I can guarantee is that if necessary London will let the rest of the UK slide in order to protect what London does well. I think we, as a region, need to make sure we are very much on a firm footing to at least have an equal voice in some of those conversations. Luke Raikes, Head of Transport at think tank IPPR North, goes even further, believing other parts of the country will also have that laser-like focus. He says: The North needs to be equally focused and it isn t currently. And we need to have a seat on the table with the Brexit negotiators. Miller adds: If not officially, unofficially London will have a seat at those negotiations as well as the UK government. He also believes Scotland and the other countries in the union may well also have separate seats, making it a priority that the North of England has some representation. Newns agrees. He says: With new mayors coming in Liverpool and Manchester it is critical to make sure they have a similar type of almost ministerial presence within those discussions. 11

12

13 Devo deals and elected mayors While the Manchester and Liverpool city regions go about the process of electing London-style mayors to drive forward their devolution deals with central government, the ballot boxes of Leeds will not be brought out of storage. When the idea was first raised people were not that interested in the structure of local government. I don t think they were especially enamoured by the idea. There s an increasing sense that if you get the right people in place they can act as a figurehead, a real focus to what a city and potentially the North is all about. Gerald Jennings, Leeds Chamber -Yorkshire roundtable The city region is not following its counterparts across the Pennines, who are pushing ahead with their agreements to take over running more of their own affairs. However, the Yorkshire devo-debate still continues, with more indications and noises from Theresa May s new government that deals just won t be struck without directlyelected mayors at the helm. But what are the views of the business community and do they see mayors as a good thing? Guy Parker, Senior Policy Advisor at the CBI, says: It s something I ve found that our members are increasingly warming to. So is Leeds missing out? Gerald Jennings, President of the city s chamber of commerce says: You can t say it s missing out at the moment. Clearly we are behind the curve as we re not part of the legislation to have mayors in. We are in danger of having to play catch up. But we don t know how much better off we would be with a proper devolution deal with an elected mayor. Jennings says that if the city region was to go down that route its elected mayor doesn t have to be a politician. For him it is about finding the right person to do the job. He also believes Yorkshire has to have an understanding the collectively it can be a lot better if we join up and adds: Manchester got there many years ago. 13

14 Is the North an attractive place for UK and international investment? 5% Don t know 6% No 89% Yes You still have the question, who do I call if I want to speak to Yorkshire? There has to be a top dog, whether we like it or not, whether that is an elected mayor or leader of a Yorkshire Combined Authority. Gerald Jennings, President of Leeds Chamber of Commerce Mark Robson, Department for International Trade and Prof Peter Slee, Leeds Beckett University - Yorkshire roundtable You still have the question, who do I call if I want to speak to Yorkshire? There has to be a top dog, whether we like it or not, whether that is an elected mayor or leader of a Yorkshire Combined Authority. Parker says: If you want to call Manchester you call Sir Howard Bernstein or Sir Richard Leese. That makes sense to people. It helps that they ve been around a long time. Mark Robson, Regional Director of the Department of International Trade, believes the ability of a mayor to make decisions is the important factor. He adds: That s the real key thing. He points to the work of elected mayors in Liverpool and Bristol, adding: They can really make a difference. Jennings agrees it is about having one person as a point of contact. Someone told me they were driving to Liverpool not so long ago and saw a sign on a development site saying if you are interested in this site call the mayor and it gave his telephone number. That s quite powerful as a statement. When it comes to driving forward the wider Northern Powerhouse project, Luke Raikes, Head of Transport at IPPR North, believes Transport for the North and the new elected mayors will take ownership. 14

15

16 Building the powerhouse brand Whatever lays ahead for the Powerhouse project, its growth as an increasingly recognised international brand has put the North of England firmly on the business map. 89% 89% of business leaders believe the North is an attractive place for both UK and international investment. The trick now, according to business leaders from across the region, is to translate that heightened awareness into real economic growth and development. The confidence that the North can deliver is certainly there when it comes to attracting inward investment from both overseas or nearer to home. A recent businessdesk.com survey on rebalancing the UK economy revealed that 89% of business leaders believe the North is an attractive place for both UK and international investment. Stephen Miller, Managing Director at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Chester, says getting the Northern Powerhouse message out to an international audience has had an impact already. He says: Particularly internationally, it s much easier to have conversations now, for countries that have significant investment to bring here, to have a conversation on a northern basis. They understand the concept of a regional structure much better. Gerald Jennings says he was made aware of the leap in international recognition for the North during a visit to Leeds by the Lord Mayor of London. The Leeds Chamber of Commerce President says: He and his team said that when they are abroad they are now picking up this brand of the Northern Powerhouse. It has resonated across the far and Middle East. The Lord Mayor said not to underestimate the power of that brand. If you can actually grasp it and get behind it you have something really powerful to sell. Roy Barry, Principal Associate at Eversheds in Manchester adds: Certainly internationally, what we have seen in markets like China, where government initiatives especially are very well received, they recognise that and want to engage with those big government initiatives. Even in other parts of the world, it has elevated the focus on this part of the UK to an extent ministers have undertaken profile raising activities, bringing business together in North America for example. That has not happened before, we have never had ministerial back up and it is very useful in places like China. The footballing powerhouses of the North are also playing their part in the profile raising work through their success on the pitch and the massive appetite for the English game overseas. 16

17 Roundtable discussion in Manchester Barry says: The Northern Powerhouse means different things in different markets. In China the fact it is a big government initiative is enough. You then introduce city brands like Liverpool and Manchester. They recognise city brands. Manchester is well recognised in all of China. Manchester United is the second most recognised foreign brand behind Coca Cola. The industrial revolution is taught in China; therefore Manchester has some recognition as the base of that, and with more modern cultural brands like Manchester United, then there is definitely recognition out there. Stephen Miller has just returned from five years spent in Asia with Standard Chartered Bank, whose name can be seen on Liverpool football shirts. He says: If you are a sponsor of a football club, in Southeast Asia all of the supporters, and there are hundreds of millions of them, will effectively migrate to your services overnight. It is just incredible, the way it follows. It s a fantastic opportunity for the North to build on what it really does extremely well. If you are in Singapore, people when they think of the UK, think about Liverpool and Manchester, they think about Liverpool FC, Manchester United and Manchester City. That s something we could absolutely build on massively, that cultural contribution that is out there already. From a media perspective, from a music perspective, these are all things the world knows about, they might not think it comes from the North and that needs to be reflected. Tim Newns, Chief Executive of Manchester s inward investment agency Midas, believes that having highlighted the major investment opportunities that exist, the UK needs to make sure potential overseas investors have access to them. He adds: It s absolutely critical that in moving forward these infrastructure plans we are also open to international investment as well, having raised the opportunities and expectations that we follow that through. Gerald Jennings says inward investment is important when it comes to further building the Northern Powerhouse name overseas and he points to the impact of German headquartered engineering group Siemens plans to create a 310m wind power manufacturing hub in Hull. If you are trying to sell a city or a region abroad they sit up and take notice when you can say Siemens has come to Hull or this international company has invested in this part of the region, he says. It resonates across Europe and the world. And that is important because it speaks to our brand and to our attractiveness. The Northern Powerhouse s arrival on the world stage has also been helped by the region s international connectivity through Manchester Airport. Tim Newns describes the new routes secured from the airport to China, the Far East and major cities across North America as pretty incredible. Particularly internationally, it s much easier to have conversations now, for countries that have significant investment to bring here, to have a conversation on a northern basis. They understand the concept of a regional structure much better. Stephen Miller, Managing Director, Bank of America Merrill Lynch The Lord Mayor said not to underestimate the power of that brand. If you can actually grasp it and get behind it you have something really powerful to sell. Gerald Jennings, President of Leeds Chamber of Commerce Even in other parts of the world, it has elevated the focus on this part of the UK to an extent ministers have undertaken profile raising activities, bringing business together in North America for example. That has not happened before, we have never had ministerial back up and it is very useful in places like China. The industrial revolution is taught in China; therefore Manchester has some recognition as the base of that, and with more modern cultural brands like Manchester United, then there is definitely recognition out there. Roy Barry, Principal Associate, Eversheds 17

18 Response count: 153 Manchester The major cities The places most in need of regeneration The North as a whole Don t know Who stands to benefit the most from a rebalancing of the Northern economy? Who should be benefiting most? He says: That connectivity has changed dramatically over the last two to three years and if that momentum can be continued it will have significant economic benefits. Charlie Cornish, Chief Executive of Manchester Airports Group (MAG), explains the growth in international flights comes down to a big push internationally by the airport, the effect of the Northern Powerhouse and the Manchester region pushing itself to the forefront more. He says: To get that one China route was three and a half years of work and probably about 40 visits to China. Mark Robson, Regional Director of the Department of International Trade, has seen the Northern Powerhouse brand grow overseas. And he believes it especially resonates in countries which aren t centrally controlled, such as the US and Germany. He says: I was talking to some colleagues in Germany who said they totally understand it. They have devolution at local level. In the US they have got states that are more powerful than the president. Where you have those kinds of states it is quite normal to have a powerful focus on a particular area. Also in lots of countries the North is seen as the industrial heartland, look at Italy, Germany, even India. People do understand it, it is starting to build. We have only really started building it and getting it out there. We really have to tie together some of the support behind it. Craig Burrow, Regional Director of property group Bruntwood, believes there are lessons to be learned by the wider region from the way Manchester s uses its strong brand to attract inward investment. They have had a much louder, stronger voice about what they re doing or what they re going to do and then they figure out the plan to get there later. Ian McCarthy, Festival Director of the International Festival for Business says: The benefit of drawing a line around something and saying what the strengths and opportunities in that area, what projects are we going to do, how do we measure success etc, gives an opportunity to profile an area. I understand there is a lot of international interest in the North, that there wasn t before the Northern Powerhouse was established. That s an opportunity. 18

19 Roundtable attendees North West: Charlie Cornish, CEO, Manchester Airports Group Warren Marshall, Group Planning Director, Peel Ports Ian McCarthy, Director, IFB Steve Miller, MD, Bank of America Merrill Lynch Tim Newns, CEO, MIDAS Luke Raikes, Head of Transport, IPPR North Paul Brodrick, Head of Connected Communities for Energy Division, Siemens Roy Barry, Principal Associate, Eversheds Tom Bridgford, Partner, Eversheds Joanne Birtwistle, Editor, TheBusinessDesk.com Yorkshire: Craig Burrow, Regional Director, Bruntwood Dominic Gibbons, Managing Director, Wykeland Group Gerald Jennings, President, Leeds Chamber of Commerce Alison Oldfield, Partner, Eversheds Guy Palmer, Senior Policy Advisor, CBI Prof Peter Slee, Vice-Chancellor, Leeds Beckett University Mark Robson, Regional Director, Department for International Trade Andrew Todd, Partner, Eversheds Alex Turner, Editor, TheBusinessDesk.com 19

20 eversheds.com Eversheds LLP 2016 Eversheds International All rights are reserved to their respective owners. Eversheds International is an international legal practice, the members of which are separate and distinct legal entities. DT06948_12/16