Speech by: Rosie Winterton MP
Venue: City of Manchester stadium

Introduction

Thank you very much for inviting me today to what looks like an excellent conference.

Having grown up on the other side of the Pennines in Doncaster, and being MP for Doncaster Central and Minister for Yorkshire and the Humber, the question of how to drive regeneration and economic growth and ensure that it spreads right across the North is one that is close to my heart.

Supporting regeneration and economic development in the Northern regions – as in every other region – has also been a top priority for Government. That’s why, since 1997, we have targeted investment to renew our communities and support job creation.

There have been huge changes in our traditional industries, but with our targeted approach we have tried to prevent a vacuum developing by ensuring that, if traditional industries have disappeared, new knowledge-led enterprises, based on innovation, entrepreneurship and international competitiveness come in their place.

Parts of the North are gaining competitive advantage in sectors from healthcare to life sciences, process industries to our low carbon future. These developments are contributing to the North’s wider renaissance.

But we all know that there is still a lot more to do.

That’s why in the current spending round we are investing heavily in regeneration activities across the north:

• Giving the three Regional Development Agencies a combined budget of £2.6 billion;
• allocating £1.9 billion through the Working Neighbourhood Funds;
• and a further £840 million for regeneration projects through the Homes and Communities Agency.

Fighting back against recession

This work has taken on a new urgency over the past 12 months, as the world economy has been battered by an unprecedented storm. While the origins of the recession were global, its effects have been local, felt across the North East, the North West, Yorkshire and the Humber, and around the country.

In my own constituency I, like everyone here, have seen the families who have been affected by redundancy; the businesses whose cash flow has dried up.   

That’s why I believe it is absolutely necessary for government at every level to intervene, and invested heavily, to help those affected by the downturn.

We have tried to do everything we can to minimise its impact and pave the way for economic recovery. The alternative, simply standing back and leaving the recession to run its course, was not an option for us.

And we are not prepared to cut off support prematurely – putting the recovery at risk.

Because we must never lose sight of the fact that the best antidote to public debt is growth – growth that’s generated by entrepreneurs, but supported by public investment to lay the foundations of economic success.

That’s why, working with the Regional Development Agencies and with Local Authorities, and our other local and regional partners, we have taken decisive action.

I believe the Northern RDAs – the Northwest Regional Development Agency; Yorkshire Forward; and One North East – have come into their own during our fight back against the global recession.

They have provided economic leadership; they have catalysed investment; and they have played a critical role in sustaining viable companies. All these are essential building blocks for economic recovery.

Whether it’s One North East’s funding for a £2.4million pilot scheme to boost research and development.

Or the Northwest Regional Development Agency’s £23 million of financing to the region’s small businesses so they can start up, invest and grow.

Or Yorkshire Forward’s backing for emerging low-carbon industries.

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This kind of support is vital to reinforce what local authorities are doing to support local industries and to develop a strong business environment.

Local authorities know local people, local authorities know local businesses, so local authorities are best placed to drive regeneration and economic renewal in local areas.

That’s why we have asked local authorities to focus on unemployment and lead our £1billion fund to create 150,000 new jobs.

Northern local authorities have acted quickly during the downturn. Giving debt advice to people worried about paying the bills; training to get people back in to work; and a lifeline for business.

And you are using Local Area Agreements to place regeneration and economic development centre stage.

In Tameside, here in Greater Manchester, the council has set up a £12 million fund to invest in local capital projects.

Over in Hull, the council has launched the ‘Ready to Go’ scheme to work with people recently made redundant in construction and other related fields, retraining them with new skills.

In Blackpool, local agencies have got together to help vulnerable young people, to provide advice, guidance and support.

Right across the North, councils are leading from the front, making sure their areas are ready to share the economic gains as the recovery begins.

That responsiveness to local circumstances, and understanding of local needs, is absolutely crucial to unlocking the economic potential that exists everywhere.

That’s why in every region, the regional minister meets regularly with their Economic Delivery Group, made up of key public sector and business leaders, to prepare for the future. 

A regional approach works

But that will require different types of interventions in different places, and to varying degrees. So our response must be region by region, area by area, so that we are supporting local economies in the most effective way.

That’s why I believe a regional approach to regeneration and economic development is so important.

In 1999 we set up the Regional Development Agencies, to promote enterprise and drive economic growth in every region. I believe the RDAs have been extremely successful.

The independent study by PricewaterhouseCoopers, released earlier this year, showed that, on average, every £1 spent by the RDAs generates an extra £4.50 for their regional economies.

And they are beginning to narrow the historic gap in economic performance between the north and the south. By the first half of this decade the gap between the growth rate of the greater South East and the Northern regions had started to close, defying the long-term trend.

So I think these facts speak for themselves. Active regional policies deliver real economic results. They will be more important than ever in the months and year ahead.

A springboard into the upturn

Today, there are some encouraging signs that economic recovery is underway.

What’s critical now is that we do the right things to drive that recovery on, here in the north and elsewhere.

Having the necessary infrastructure is vital. I will be meeting the Transport Secretary Lord Adonis to explore options for a high-speed rail line linking the great cities of the North – Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle – with London and the continent.

A line that will draw the North and South closer together physically and symbolise the closing of the structural economic divide between the two.

We are also looking at whether new financing mechanisms could be used to invest in local and city-region regeneration projects, as we said we would do in the Budget.

Building Britain’s Future

In all of these areas, effective partnerships – pooling resources, sharing knowledge – will be absolutely critical to achieving results. We need each other’s know-how as we embark on a more activist approach to the economy.

In the summer we published Building Britain’s Future. It outlines our approach to equipping our people and businesses to compete in the new global economy that emerges from this downturn.

On education and skills; high levels of productivity and growth; and Government investment in key growth areas such as advanced manufacturing, digital networks and low carbon technologies. 

Across the north there are examples of ambitious, long-term regeneration projects that will help achieve that vision:

• Mediacity UK, under construction in Salford, will be Europe’s first purpose-built creative and digital media centre. It is the 3rd biggest construction project in Europe, generating many new jobs and continuing Salford’s renaissance.
• In North Tyneside, the former Swan Hunter shipyard has been bought by the local council and One North East, and will be transformed into a hub for the off-shore and renewable energy industries. It’s estimated the offshore wind market alone could generate £3 billion for the regional economy and create between 15,000 and 30,000 jobs.
• At Hatfield near Doncaster, Yorkshire Forward and the Local Authorities around the Humber have helped get the green light for a massive project to build a commercial carbon capture and storage plant, next to a clean coal power station on the site of the Hatfield deep mine. There are still some remaining stages to go through, but funding will include £165 million from the European Energy Programme. This project will create 2,500 jobs in plant construction and 6,000 jobs in pipeline construction.

But to achieve our ambitions we all need to work together – central government, all of you from local authorities, and the RDAs – because our economic future is a shared endeavour. 

The Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill, which has nearly finished its passage through Parliament, paves the way for single regional strategies.

These strategies will cement the partnerships we need to forge, and draw up a coherent blueprint for action in each region and locality.

They are a powerful way of ensuring that communities share the spoils of economic success. Crucially, they will be developed jointly by all of you, in local authorities and RDAs.

The Leaders’ Boards, which the new legislation puts on a statutory footing, provide essential accountability and will ensure the priorities of your local communities are at the heart of the broader frameworks taking shape.

We can already see this approach working in the Multi-Area Agreements, where councils can, over a wider geographical area, shape services around the needs of communities – in skills, employment, education, and health.

Conclusion

This is absolutely vital if we to build on the successes that, working together, we have already achieved.

Regeneration and economic development are all about reversing social, economic and physical decline; building a new low carbon economy; enabling communities everywhere to share economic prosperity; and opening up new life chances for their residents.

All of you here today should be proud of your outstanding work in the North West, In the North East and in Yorkshire and the Humber. In the past 10 years these regions have been transformed beyond recognition, and a new confidence has blossomed.

Although the last year has been difficult as the old economic certainties have been swept away, I am still full of confidence for the future – and you should be too.

The Northern regions have firm foundations – skilled citizens, world-class businesses, and an enterprising, can-do spirit – on which to build economic prosperity for everyone, whoever they are, wherever they live. Colleagues, let’s work together to make it happen.

Thank you.