Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce members call for Northern Powerhouse refocus

Chris Fletcher, Policy and Marketing Director from Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce

Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce has been gathering feedback from its members around the Northern Powerhouse ahead of its response to the BIS Select Committee Inquiry.

Members expressed concern around the increasing lack of clarity of the concept with calls being made for a clear refocus on the core elements of the Northern Powerhouse – transport and connectivity.

The Chamber has been surveying its membership on a long-term basis and engaging directly with members at its Action For Business events to ensure that the business community’s voice is heard.

Survey results show that there is strong support for the Northern Powerhouse but there is an absence of business representation within the local decision making process. As well as surveying its members, the Chamber has also been engaging with government, local authority leaders and MPs.

Chris Fletcher, Marketing and Policy Director at the Chamber, said: “There is a great deal of concern amongst members around the lack of business representation and it is clear there is need for more obvious and stronger representation of the local business community in the Northern Powerhouse discussions.

“Feedback reveals that businesses acknowledge the benefits of the brand, but there are fears that the Northern Powerhouse concept is drifting. Members argue that there needs to be a renewed focus on the core elements, identified as: investment in transport, digital infrastructure, skills and the importance of a single labour market.”

When it comes to geography, members maintain that the Northern Powerhouse should stay with the original idea from the Chancellor of remaining within a 40-mile radius of the Greater Manchester area and that the Manchester to Leeds transport link remains vital to the scheme.

Chamber members state that in order to measure the success of the Northern Powerhouse, there must be clear performance indicators focusing on infrastructure, connectivity and skills. In order to achieve this, additional investment is required in the North.

Based on the results of the members surveyed, the Chamber makes the following recommendations:

• That the government infrastructure, connectivity and skills remain a priority of the Northern Powerhouse concept and that the government must keep a tight focus on both a geographical and policy level.
• The Chamber also recommends that moving forward, devolution arrangements must be strong and coherent, it is also key that all activity concerning the Northern Powerhouse must include regular and open engagement with businesses.