Green Bank verdict is ‘lost opportunity’
HANDING the Green Investment Bank to London and Edinburgh is a ‘lost opportunity’ to rebalance the economy, according to the deputy chairman of Marketing Leeds.
Roger Marsh, senior partner at PwC in Leeds and northern leader for government and public sector, said he was “mystified” at how the Government could rate the city as “weak” on financial services when it judged its bid to host the Bank.
Business Secretary Vince Cable yesterday chose London and Edinburgh to be the locations for the Green Investment Bank, a new Government-backed institution which will invest £3bn in green infrastructure projects.
Leeds, Sheffield and Hull had all submitted bids among 32 nationally. It emerged yesterday that Leeds was one of the 11 to make it to the second stage of the process but it was not included in the final shortlist of six.
The Leeds bid was considered “strong” in terms of the city’s ability to recruit green economy and other professional experts but “weak” on financial services and the extent to which it could provide a hub for green investment activity.
Mr Marsh told TheBusinessDesk.com: “I am not surprised that London has retained a key role, but it is a lost opportunity to make some headway in the broader plan to rebalance the economy and continue to rebuild confidence and tap into the undoubted competence of the North.
“Leeds has a very strong reputation in financial services, and I am mystified that the bid was judged weak in this area. Perhaps the decision in favour of Edinburgh, as compared to other English cities outside of London, is not so surprising against the current background.”
The Leeds City Region bid had focused on the city’s strengths in financial services and professional advice as well as its geographic proximity to large numbers of green infrastructure projects.
Reacting to the announcement at property expo MIPIM, Neil McLean, chairman of the Leeds City Region Local Enterprise Partnership, told TheBusinessDesk.com, he was “naturally disappointed” by the decision.
However, Mr McLean said the news would not deflect from the positive steps made within the Leeds City Region and across Yorkshire on the green agenda.
Mr McLean said: “We absolutely intend to grow the green economy. We’ll obviously work with the Green Investment Banks and businesses for the good of the City Region. This decision stops nothing and changes nothing.
“For us as a LEP, bringing all the interested parties together and formulating the bid has been a great step for us in driving the whole green economy forward.”
MPs from across the political spectrum had supported the Leeds City Region bid and lobbied Mr Cable to choose the Yorkshire city.
Julian Smith, MP for Skipton and Ripon, said: “Many people in Yorkshire will be extremely disappointed that the Green Investment Bank’s headquarters will not be in the region after such a strong case was put forward.
“Yorkshire is already a region leading the way for low carbon technology and green innovation and the Government should now accelerate its support for schemes like carbon capture and storage which are vital for Yorkshire’s economy.”
