Powerhouse is ‘world’s 21st biggest economy’

THE regional head of commercial property company Colliers International says the four key cities which make up the Northern Powerhouse would rank its economy 21st in the world if it was a country in its own right – ahead of Denmark and Sweden.

Andrew McFarlane, head of Colliers in the North West, was hailing the performance of his company in Annual Regional Review, in which he said the cities, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Sheffield were coming closer together.

“They are increasingly sharing the Northern Powerhouse platform to market themselves as a magnet for growth,” he said.

“There is an understanding that together they are stronger and that acting as one they have the potential to be a counterweight to London, something they could never achieve individually.

“Since the term Northern Powerhouse was first used in George Osborne’s June 2014 speech at the Power Hall in Manchester’s’  Museum of Science & Industry, there has been remarkable social and economic progress and the momentum continues to build.”

He said the key drivers for growth included transport and infrastructure creating state of the art facilities to connect people and enable bringing together city regions and large urban groups by improving transport and connectivity.

Another is the process of devolution – returning money and power to urban centres, giving local people more control over their futures.
In skills and education decisions will be made by those best able to identify local needs.

And he looked forward to the next 12 months in which a statutory body will be created, Transport for the North, which will create a pan-north transport authority to transform transport infrastructure across the north under the leadership of David Brown.

McFarlane went on: “As cities adapt and grow closer, so do the businesses and populations within those cities.

“This creates a growing body of organisations and individuals who understand the concept and talk to their colleagues and friends about the benefits who then take actions that collectively move the whole region forward.

“In our own business we have taken steps in this direction. Having opened an office in Liverpool in January 2015, we now operate our pool of talent across our Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds offices as a single resource, moving people to the cities and projects that demand their particular skill, experience and ability.

“We are optimistic for the North West – there is building work right across the city in Manchester and a level of enthusiasm and excitement in Liverpool that has not been seen for many years.
 
“We are fortunate to have two such strong and vibrant cities with outstanding civic leadership at the vanguard of progress towards a better future within the Northern Powerhouse.”

Click here to sign up to receive our new South West business news...
Close