State of Region: Bosses’ backing for NW
THE North West has been given a resounding thumbs-up as a place to do business, but would be better still if issues such as access to finance, inward investment and transport were better addressed, TheBusinessDesk.com’s State of the Region Survey, in association with law firm DLA Piper, has revealed.
A clear majority, 70%, were satisfied that the region is a good place to do business – with 29% saying it is good, but less so than another region. Just 1% deemed the region a bad location.
Access to finance was highlighted as businesses’ biggest bug-bear, followed by concerns over inward investment strategies and also transport and infrastructure.
Click here to download the full State of the Region report.
TheBusinessDesk.com’s State of the Region Survey, which has been completed by hundreds of business leaders, is supported by law firm DLA Piper.
The results give a comprehensive view of the business landscape across the North West, Yorkshire and West Midlands.
The State of the Region survey also highlights a lack of thorough awareness about changes to regional economic development and funding by the Coalition Government.
Just 4% said there was a clear understand of Local Enterprise Partnerships – which on a much smaller scale and with a fraction of the budget – will replace the North West Development Agency.
More than half (51%) said there was a very limited understanding of LEPs while 34% a third said there was a general understanding of the concept but a lot of detail still missing.
LEPs are being established in the Manchester, Liverpool, Cheshire and Cumbria, while the Lancashire bids were rejected.
In response to the question of what could be done to improve the business culture of the region, 26% of respondents said longer term strategic planning, 19% said cities working collaboratively and 12% are seeking better networking opportunities.
There was little positivity for the commercial property sector, with 46% of respondents expecting very little activity over the next 12 months.
Just 12% expect speculative development to recommence, while 25% are expecting to see owners trying to dispose of existing assets to recoup funds.
Commenting on concern over LEPs, Anita Weightman, real estate partner at DLA Piper Manchester added: “It is not surprising that people are confused about the new regional partnerships and concerned about a funding shortfall.
“Last year Regional Development Agencies received almost £1.4bn, while the Regional Growth fund now expects to see the same amount stretched over three years.
“Many businesses had hoped for a streamlined transition from the RDA’s, however the setting up of LEPs has been extremely confusing, and without an overall plan of what is to be achieved, there is a real danger that each partnership will focus on their own priorities, leading to an incoherent approach that is unfit for purpose.
“On the other hand, LEPs will be strategic bodies at a more local level than RDA’s, therefore giving talented and influential private sector figures the opportunity to be more involved in leading development and inward investment in their regions.”
Looking at the property market Chris Bowes, real estate and planning partner, at DLA Piper Manchester said: “We are seeing caution from our developer clients who are seeking sites that already have planning permission or which will receive permission before the latest planning reforms become law because the implications of the new planning procedures and policies are so uncertain.
“Meanwhile, the abolition of funding including Planning Aid has angered the Royal Town Planning Institute given the importance of neighbourhood planning to the Localism agenda, particularly as the guidelines for the new Neighbourhood Planning Funds are unclear and uncertain.
“If the region is to reap the full potential of the schemes that are already approved, the Government needs to ensure that its proposed policies and procedures encourage private developers to keep on building for the future.”
