Shadow Chancellor shares “bold ambitions” for the North East at Chamber event

North East businesses and organisations met with Shadow Chancellor Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP at an event organised by the North East England Chamber of Commerce.

Chamber members discussed “strong opportunities” for the region, with conversations taking place around the labour market and economic inactivity, regional investment, skills, digital connectivity, and health and social care. During the event, Rachel shared her optimism for the North East, and presented her top three priorities to help Britain lead the way globally.

Rachel commented: “We need economic and financial stability and security. We need to tackle the cost of living crisis and we need a proper plan for economic prosperity and growth. We also need to be attracting our share of global investment, particularly in the North East where your proud industrial heritage means you can be leaders in this field.”

John McCabe, chief executive, North East England Chamber of Commerce, added: “It was a pleasure to host the Shadow Chancellor. Our members shared their experiences across 2022 and what they want to see in the upcoming Budget.

“We saw clear ambition from the Shadow Chancellor on the region’s potential, with some excellent discussions taking place to try and tackle the challenges businesses are currently facing and ensure the region continues to grow and prosper.”

On economic growth, the Shadow Chancellor said that there are companies in Britain whose productivity matches the best companies in the world but that there is a long “tail” of firms with lower than average productivity.

Businesses discussed how to attract more investment into the region, with key areas including investment in infrastructure and in startup and high-growth businesses. Education and collaboration between private and public sectors was highlighted as particularly important in this area.

Chamber members commented that a partnership is needed between public and private industries to ensure opportunities for green and net zero growth, such as carbon capture and storage, are maximised. With so much energy from offshore wind available in the UK, the same approach is needed in other industries to galvanise private investment and secure jobs.

Recognising that skills remain a key concern for businesses, the Shadow Chancellor said it was important that local businesses and leaders should be able to decide what’s needed, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, and used Sunderland and the automotive sector as a good example of adapting national policy to local conditions.

Rachel concluded: “The current skills policy is devised for the whole of the UK. But we need older people and young people to come back into the labour market and to make sure they get the skills needed for the jobs available. This means proper career advice and training. We also need to reform the Apprenticeship Levy to ensure it is really working to get people the skills they need.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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