Growth is the key target

Sep 26 2006 By Evening Gazette

Joanne Fryett, North East Chamber of Commerce policy and representation manager of the Tees Valley.

The Go For Jobs campaign's immediate aim was to raise awareness of the issue of Article 14 notices and to highlight the potential impact they have upon the region.

Information supplied to the North-east Chamber of Commerce stated that as much as £1bn worth of investment, with the ability to create 10,000 jobs, was being threatened.

In the short term, Go For Jobs called for the Highways Agency to stop the negative use of Article 14 notices. The campaign called for greater understanding between the agency, developers and local authorities to enable projects to go ahead in a controlled fashion.

In the medium term, it called on the Government to reverse the legacy of under-funding that had created the Catch 22 situation where, on the one hand, Government departments (the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) were calling for greater growth in the North and, on the other hand, another department was refusing to sanction job-creating projects.

Article 14s - solution, not cause:

Transport minister Stephen Ladyman admitted that the Highways Agency's only method of counteracting congestion was to use Article 14 notices. It does not possess any means to positively resolve the situation unless the Treasury releases funds for road improvements.

Effects on Tees Valley

Key areas of concern are the A19/A66 - a lot of problems are caused when taking roads over rivers - although there are other hotspots, which have included key regeneration sites, Victoria Harbour, North Shore and Durham Tees Valley Airport.

Overall effects have meant a delay in projects getting started and planning approval with investors being reluctant due to indicated costs for road upgrades.

Where are we now?

Dr Ladyman visited the region at the end of July and gave hope of a solution to all parties.

He gave assurances that the negative situation would be reversed and the Highways Agency and developers would work more closely together to avoid some of the problems to date.

There are currently two working parties, one looking at the Tees Valley the other at Tyneside.

The Highways Agency is due to report later this summer on proposed solutions to address some of the highlighted problems and Dr Ladyman has given assurances he will give them swift consideration.

The core message is simple: Go For Jobs is not calling for investment to ease congestion - we are calling for investment to ensure growth.

The North-east doesn't suffer from congestion in the same way that other regions do - we are relatively lucky in this respect.

However, there are pinchpoints in vital areas that are restricting growth. It is vital that, ahead of the Comprehensive Spending Review next year, we get the message to the Department for Transport and to the Treasury that this is a priority that will enable the region to prosper.

How can people help?

The greatest help we can get is for major businesses in the North-east to lobby for change. The regional development agency, One NorthEast, has a major role to play in persuading the Government that targeted infrastructure improvements will make an enormous difference to the region's economy.

If we are to meet targets and expectations on the Northern Way and potentially on other initiatives, such as City Regions we will need an infrastructure fit for the 21st Century.