‘ Seize new industries as means for future growth’

THE NORTH needs to seize new opportunities to regenerate its economy as its people set out on the long road to recovery from the pandemic crisis.

Judith Blake, leader of Leeds Council, and Nick Forbes, leader of Newcastle Council, told audiences at the Great Northern Conference the impact of coronavirus had exposed the underlying inequalities in the region’s economy.

They said the North had to build on foundations of its newer industries to set the platform for future growth.

But they warned there needed to be a new relationship between Whitehall and the North to allow local people to take control of resources to build on regional strengths.

Both said the crisis had changed the way regional partners dealt with each other and they were united in making collective requests to Whitehall.

Coun Blake set out the grave impact of the pandemic on Leeds where she said a third of the workforce had been furloughed.

Universal Credit claims had risen by 96 per cent between March and September and 42,000 people were unemployed – up 81 per cent.

Rising rates of claimants were being seen right across the city but low earners were three times as likely to be out of work or furloughed and twice as likely to be in jobs exposed to health risks.

She called on central government to put its trust in local authorities to deliver effective test, trace and contain strategies to get on top of the virus amid concerns this was not happening.

Coun Forbes said the “immediate and most pressing priority is to protect as much of the economy as we can”.

“We need the survival of our businesses as we can’t grow them again in future if they collapse,” he said.

He said the crisis had accelerated changes that were already underway and there were real opportunities for job creation in emerging sectors including digital, a low carbon economy, and health and life sciences.

But these needed to be good quality, well paid and secure jobs as the pandemic had exposed the fragility facing workers in sectors including the so- called “gig economy”.

He said devolution of skills and training to northern authorities from the centre was urgently needed to “help people retrain now for the jobs of the future”.