We’re a region of vision despite what they say

Mar 11 2008 by Neil Warwick, The Journal

AT a recent gathering of professional advisers, talk turned to whether or not confidence in the North East had been damaged by a series of bad PR pieces surrounding the loss of computer discs and the credit crunch, to name but two.

Just before new year it appeared that you could not open the Evening Standard on the National Express train back from London without reading another piece pointing out something else the North East had “got wrong”. This no doubt is a conversation that has been rehearsed and repeated countless times in the region over past months. Undoubtedly this will have had an effect on the collective confidence of the region, but will it harm the financial confidence of the North East in the long term? Inevitably there will be some London-centric commentators who will delight in our image as an industrialised wasteland which cannot be entrusted with more sophisticated or complicated matters. However, being realistic, these detractors have always existed and will always revel in perpetuating the so-called North- South divide.

Should this dent in our confidence (created largely by City journalists) actually affect the ability of businesses to raise finance? Growth in the North East, measured by GVA, has been higher than the rest of the country for the past 12 months, so on a superficial level it has not affected day-to-day growth of business. It should be noted, though, that one of the key facets of economic regeneration is our ability to create entrepreneurial businesses (which has been the cornerstone of our economy since the days of Armstrong and Swann).

Thankfully, in that respect, the region realised over 15 years ago that it needed to be self-sufficient and not reliant on the whims of London. In the North East, we have, largely thanks to the vision of One NorthEast, created a number of soft loan and venture capital funds which have helped stimulate the creation of thousands of businesses and jobs. We have a thriving enterprise culture led by Enterprise Agencies created in the region, by the region and for the region with Entrust, Tedco and Project North East leading the way. We have a unified Business Link and the only truly regional Chamber of Commerce. We are the only region where the membership organisations co-ordinate efforts through a voluntary board, the Northern Business Forum.

Looking at a picture where we have created and run within the region funds, fund management, enterprise support and co-ordinated membership organisations, it does not paint a picture of a region lacking in confidence or where it is difficult to raise finance. It paints a picture of a region with vision where there is genuine communication and collaboration. Maybe the Evening Standard would like to report on that? Or would The Journal like to ask how much it costs to build an Olympic swimming pool in London?

These detractors will always revel in perpetuating the so-called North-South divide