Member Article

Liverpool's private sector performing well says Cities Report

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson has welcomed a new report which shows 12,800 private sector jobs were created from 2010 – 2012 in the city.

‘Cities Outlook 2014’, the annual health check of UK cities by urban economic think-tank Centre for Cities, shows that Liverpool is among the 10 cities in the UK with the highest net growth in jobs, despite huge cuts in the public sector.

Liverpool is ranked at number five – ahead of Nottingham and Leeds, and just behind Manchester which is fourth.

Mayor Anderson said: “One of my mantras is that Liverpool is open for business, so I am really pleased that, in the face of the economic downturn we have been able to grow the number of jobs in the city.

“We are working really hard every single day to attract new firms and investors to the city, as well as growing startup businesses and encouraging entrepreneurs.

“And these figures do not include our recent success in securing around 1,000 new private sector jobs through bringing firms such as H2 Energy, BAC Mono, BT and Amey. He added: “Later this year, we are hosting the International Festival for Business which is a huge opportunity for Liverpool to market itself to the world, showcasing the city as a great place to invest.

“We’ve got a number of major schemes in the pipeline which will create significant numbers of positions and I am confident we are on track to deliver on my Mayoral pledge to attract thousands of jobs and investment.

“Despite the challenges we face with our budget, there’s no doubt there are still an awful lot of good things happening in the city and, as I keep saying, I firmly believe Liverpool’s best days are ahead of it.”

The Centre for Cities report also calls for a radical devolution of powers from Whitehall – echoing a similar plea from Mayor Anderson and other Core Cities for taxes raised locally to be spent locally.

The Core Cities Group, London Councils and Mayor of London have jointly launched a City Centred campaign to call for decentralised fiscal reform, beginning with the devolution of property taxes such as Stamp Duty, in order to enable cities to drive economic growth.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .