The flooding brought out friendship and support

Oct 8 2008 by Jon Aitchison, The Journal

THEY say you really find out who your friends are in times of trouble and Northumberland has had a tough month – however the business community has pulled together and the good news is we have some great friends out there.

I refer to the floods we saw during September and, in particular, to Morpeth residents and businesses who have encountered some of the worst conditions on record.

Despite the being cut off with the main street and many low lying areas under water the community pulled together with the emergency services – their achievements a testament to their tenacity.

In no time at all Morpeth was very much open for business.

On behalf of the chamber we would like to thank everyone for their efforts. However, please remember what the business community needs more than anything is customers – so please get down into Morpeth where it is very much business as usual.

Well done everyone.

The Northumberland Committee is made up of a wide range of business people who represent our county’s diverse range of industries – from the manufacturing base in the South East of the county through the more agricultural west and touristic north – however the one common item on everyone’s agenda is transport infrastructure.

The Journal, which has been campaigning since 1990 for the dualling of the A1, helped launch an initiative this week to step up the campaign for dual carriageway between Morpeth and Dunbar. It is incredible to think that in 2008 the only road which links the capital of England and Scotland is still a single carriageway for a significant part of its length.

The campaign has cross party political support from throughout the county and also from across the Borders where many of Northumberland’s strategic trading partners, customers, employers and employees are based.

The initiative will certainly have the full backing of the Northumberland business community as adequate road infrastructure is a key factor in the continued successful development of the region.

The next meeting of the Northumberland Committee is on the 19th November, all NECC members are welcome, contact rachel.spence@necc.co.uk  for more details.

Jon Aitchison is NECC director and chairman of NECC Northumberland Committee