Chamber vows to pursue positive and practical agenda
THE country’s largest chamber of commerce has vowed to pursue a positive agenda in the face of the recession.
Greater Manchester Chamber, which has 5,300 members, says its is doing its best to support businesses which have been “battered by bad news.”
Chief executive Angie Robinson told TheBusinessDesk: “We feel very strongly that while it’s challenging and difficult, the economy is not terminal – the world has not crashed and burned.
“Some businesses are struggling, some are coping and some are doing well. The economy is patchy and some of our members are tearing their hair out and others are seeing it as an opportunity – the labour market is clearly easier and as rival companies struggle there could be business to be picked up.
“I’m keen to say that we need to be really ‘Manchester’ about this – defiant, innovative and resilient. We have been accused of talking up the economy – we resist that – we are reporting it as we see it.
She said the chamber is promoting the help and support that available to businesses, and lobbying the Government to resolve key issues.
Mrs Robinson said: “I met Gordon Brown when he was in Manchester last week and raised a number of issues with him. Clearly the banking crisis is having a big impact and we’re also concerned about the withdrawal of credit insurance to many companies supplying retailers.”
She said membership of the organisation – which is funded by members’ subscriptions had stayed strong despite the downturn: “We are are a business like our members, so we’re not immune from to what’s going on out there, but we’ve not seen membership fall dramatically.
“We are having to work harder than ever for our members and keeping our costs under control at the same time. While challenging, it’s also rewarding to be able to help other people through.”
Ilona Krohn, the chamber’s chief economic adviser, added: “Yes the economy is bad – but we have successfully talked ourselves into this recession – and we now need to focus on talking our way out of it.”
