Targeted action to boost skills, develop physical and digital
infrastructure and attract fresh investment will be vital if all
parts of England are to build back better from the economic
ravages of coronavirus, says a new report from the CBI.
The CBI’s Reviving
Regions paper, sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group, highlights
long-standing regional inequalities across England which limit
growth and opportunity and inhibit
productivity.
It says the disparities in
economic performance are large, both across England and within
regions, and warns they are at risk of widening further if
Government levelling-up ambitions falter in the wake of
Covid-19.
The paper calls for a
long-term strategic vision which can guide the country through a
vital post-Covid recovery and towards long-term prosperity by
addressing key challenges in growing skills, enhancing
connectivity and attracting
investment.
Underpinning all of this is a
call to empower local and regional leaders to create a culture
where businesses can operate, invest and grow with
confidence.
The report’s recommendations
include:
-
Building vibrant
local labour
markets:
including increasing local capacity to deliver back-to-work
programmes alongside a long-term focus on the devolution of
adult skills to meet our growing skills and retraining
gap.
-
Transforming local
infrastructure to facilitate new ways of
working:
including a focus on the future of towns and cities, improving
digital connectivity, and a wholesale reform of regional
funding to ensure a strategic approach to future
investment.
-
Inspiring
world-class, innovative businesses to invest in the
regions:
including short term interventions to help businesses grow,
locally designed and delivered business support with a focus on
access to exporting opportunities, and interventions to close
the gap in regional R&D
funding.
The CBI believes the actions
outlined in Reviving Regions can mitigate the regional
impact of the pandemic and ensure no towns or cities are left
behind as the nation looks to
rebuild.
However, it stresses that a
‘one size fits all’ approach cannot succeed in combating issues
which are unevenly spread, and advocates actions being locally
and regionally led to ensure they are appropriately
targeted.
Matthew Fell, CBI
Chief UK Policy Director,
said:
“The twin threats of Covid-19
and a potential no-deal Brexit have created a devastating and
unprecedented economic challenge. Building back quickly and
effectively is essential, but a recovery driven only by limited
pockets of productivity is far from a real recovery, and hardly
the basis for a brighter
future.
“Businesses in every corner
of England stand ready and willing to play their part in the
economic rebound, but too-often see their efforts hampered by
inadequate infrastructure and limited access to skilled
workers.
“The Government must
therefore prioritise long-term investment in the critical
structures, training, and innovation needed to support jobs and
quality of life around the UK. This long-overdue levelling-up can
lay the foundation for a better, greener and fairer economy for
all.”
Jo Harris, one of
Lloyds Banking Group's ten Ambassadors for the nations and
regions of the UK,
said:
“Every part of the UK has a
vital role in rebuilding the economy and our communities in the
wake of this pandemic.
“The CBI’s Reviving
Regions report is an important contribution to the debate
about how we boost jobs, drive growth and attract investment to
our towns and cities so they can play their full part in
supporting the national and regional
recovery.
“Lloyds Banking Group is
committed to helping every part of the UK build back from the
effects of the pandemic and many of the themes highlighted in
this report echo what we have heard through The Big
Conversation, our own programme which brings together
political leaders, businesses and policy experts to explore the
best road to recovery across the
UK.”
18 November
2020
Further
information:
The CBI’s Reviving
Regions report is attached. Its full list of 10
recommendations can be viewed on pages 11 and
12.
