Member Article

North East economy battles back from recession

Business leaders have given an upbeat assessment of the fortunes of the North East economy.

Today Insider magazine held an Economic Forum which brought together a panel of experts to debate key issues affecting local businesses.

Bosses from North East Finance, export support group UKTI, process cluster body NEPIC and Tees Valley Unlimited attended the debate, which highlighted the strength of key sectors such as process, petrochemical and high-value engineering.

A key area of discussion centred on the supply of finance and whether it could be accessed easily by SMEs looking to grow their business.

Andrew Mitchell, chief executive of North East Finance – which manages the £125m Finance for Business North East programme – said: “Since the financial crash of 2008, some businesses have struggled to access finance at affordable rates. However, there have been some key funding streams through the Finance for Business North East programme which has provided a solution to many of these companies.

“These funds have provided more than £82m of direct investment in local companies and secured over £91m of private sector cash to support deals from venture capital firms, business angels and other investors.

Mr Mitchell added: “We are hopeful that programmes such as this will keep the North East economy on track in what are still challenging conditions.”

Other discussion points included the ability of the local infrastructure to support growth; whether the region had the necessary skills to grow; and the importance of exports in fast-tracking business growth.

Stephen Catchpole, managing director of Tees Valley Unlimited – the Tees Valley LEP – said: “The local economy is showing signs of robustness and many companies have been successful in securing business from around the globe. We welcome attempts to bring investment to the area as it can act as a catalyst for further economic growth.”

The Finance for Business North East fund had benefited many local businesses, including Newcastle biotech firm Glythera, which received £700,000 from the Technology Fund to develop a new generation of biological therapeutics for the pharmaceutical industry.

The fund (also known as the JEREMIE programme) is the most successful of its type in the UK. Since its launch in 2010, it has provided debt and equity funding to almost 600 SMEs across the North East, creating or safeguarding nearly 3,000 jobs.

Backed by cash from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Investment Bank (EIB), the scheme is on track to support 850 businesses, create more than 5,000 jobs and safeguard a further 2,800 jobs by the end of next year.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Jez Davison .