Connecting the Northern Powerhouse

ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

CONNECTING THE

NORTHERN

POWERHOUSE IN ASSOCIATION WITH

A once in a lifetime opportunity

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THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2015

Connecting the Northern Powerhouse

Why it's time to connect Liverpool with the future...

A foreword on the Linking Liverpool initative by Liverpool Echo Editor Alastair Machray

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Liverpool Echo Editor Alastair Machray

ANY years ago I attended a conference designed to boost sales of my company's newspapers.

Directors of every function in every region were summoned.

Someone asked me what my role as editor contributed, and what my aspirations were.

I replied somewhat blithely that my job was to produce a good newspaper and my aspiration was for my newspaper to be "as good as it could be".

"Obviously," was the scathing retort. "But how will you know when you're good? What does GOOD look like?"

It was a fair question

and one that informed our planning for years to come.

And it’s a question I asked myself as I sat down to write this supplement’s foreword.

If we have a Northern Powerhouse we need it to be good. But what does GOOD look like?

For me it looks like this: It has Liverpool city region alongside Manchester at the top table, our unique culture and creativity strengthening the whole.

It has committed and talented politicians working together brilliantly - no matter what political party or geography they represent. It’s all for one and all for the North.

It has transport links that not only move people and freight at high speed and high efficiency, but are the envy of the developed world - the blueprint for how effective regions should connect their cities, connect with the rest of the country, connect with the rest of the world.

It has no impact on local identity.

Liverpool has its unique selling points, as does Manchester, Leeds or Newcastle. They are different but pull in the same direction.

It has a future for its brightest young talents: I attended the graduation ceremony at Liverpool John Moores University recently and in bright-eyed student

faces I saw hopes and I saw dreams. A good Northern Powerhouse can make those dreams come true without need of relocation to the South East.

It has a stream of investment; blue chip companies wanting to come here because it is best for all aspects of their business, not simply best for grantaid.

It has a fair quota of relocated government departments and their subsidiary operations.

Influence and perspective are skewed and damaging in a London-led Britain.

It has high-quality jobs for those who want to work and high-quality health provision for those who are unable to.

It has tourist-trap cities that continually grow in population, prosperity and in the excellence of lifestyle they offer to those who live and those who visit.

That’s what good looks like.

Now, as it all begins, we are connected by ambition and by our geography and by our northern resilience.

It’s time to connect the rest.

Alastair Machray Editor, Liverpool Echo, Editor-in-Chief, Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales

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Connecting the Northern Powerhouse

Liverpool: At the Heart of the Northern Powerhouse

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Robert Hough signs the Linking Liverpool pledge outside Lime Street Station

Liverpool city region business leaders launch Linking Liverpool business campaign

"LINKING LIVERPOOL AIMS TO SECURE THE DELIVERY OF AN INTEGRATED TRANSPORT SYSTEM THAT DRIVES ECONOMIC GROWTH FOR LIVERPOOL AND THE WHOLE OF THE NORTH OF ENGLAND."

HERE has been a huge focus in the media on High Speed rail - 'HS2' linking North and South, 'HS3' East to West.

But freight and passenger capacity, local transport connectivity and speed are all key transport issues to be addressed if we are to deliver economic growth for Liverpool City Region and across the whole Northern Powerhouse economy.

“The so-called High Speed Rail projects are actually just one, albeit important, part of a much wider strategic ambition that puts transport connectivity at the centre of delivering economic growth for Liverpool City Region, the whole of the North of England and the UK,”

says David Brown, Chief Executive and Director General of Merseytravel.

Connecting people to their place of work, to do business, to their families, to services and for their leisure are all of course fundamental to our day to day lives and the economy – whether it's by rail, road, air or water. People need to be able to get from A to B and then on to C efficiently, whether that is a short local journey or travelling between different cities.

“Speed is important but it’s at least as much about capacity in the transport system,” says Brown.

"The railways were born in Liverpool, but now our ageing rail networks are increasingly busy at peak times and there is a limit to the number, size and speed of trains

that the networks can support without major investment.

“Securing national investment in new rail lines and new rollingstock for both East-West and North-South intercity links can deliver the capacity we need for the future, with increased speed as it's a welcome by-product of modern infrastructure and rolling stock.

"The big inter-city schemes are vital, but the investment in them is only fully realised if there is also investment in connectivity within city regions, connecting people to and from the main transport hubs such as Liverpool Lime Street station quickly and efficiently. Putting both together is a key driver for inward investment in our region.”

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Connecting the Northern Powerhouse Hundreds of millions of pounds have been invested inLiverpool’s port facilities

“WHEN YOU CONSIDER THAT 90% OF FREIGHT COMING IN TO THE UK DOES SO THROUGH PORTS IN THE SOUTH OF ENGLAND, WHEN OVER HALF OF THAT ENDS UP COMING BY ROAD TO DESTINATIONS NORTH OF BIRMINGHAM, YOU CAN SEE THE NEED STRAIGHT AWAY."

Freight capacity is the key to success...

The efficient movement of goods as well as people is absolutely vital if Liverpool is to achieve real and sustainable economic growth

WHEN it comes to economic growth, it’s not just about extra capacity for passengers but also for freight.

Robert Hough, Chair of the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise

Partnership, which is responsible for strategic economic development in the city region, including the Superport initiative, recognises that the movement of goods as well as people

David Brown signs the Linking Liverpool pledge

is fundamental for Liverpool economic growth as well as for the whole of the North of England.

“When you consider that 90% of freight coming in to the UK

does so through ports in the South of England, when over half of that ends up coming by road to destinations north of Birmingham, you can see the need straight away," says Hough.

“The hundreds of millions of pounds of investment going in to Liverpool’s port facilities, including to take the very biggest ‘Post Panamax’ container ships, means that we will truly offer the port for the North, and this needs to be matched by both the rail and road capacity and connectivity to make sure we can get the incoming freight out across the North – and our outbound freight, likewise, out through Liverpool.”

Considering the Prime Minister’s call for an export-led recovery from the recession, as well as the rebalancing of the national economy, you can see that Liverpool is one of the North’s greatest assets.

Increasingly it's difficult to imagine how any kind of Northern Powerhouse can be delivered without this fundamental contribution from Liverpool.

Through the Linking Liverpool campaign, Liverpool City Region has successfully made and had accepted by the Government a strong economic case for the benefits to the Liverpool

City Region from full HS2 connectivity and across the North for 'HS3' – more correctly known as the ‘TransNorth’ rail line.

And our local Transport Strategy for Growth demonstrates how local transport schemes - such as connectivity to Liverpool Airport and to North Wales through bringing the ‘Halton Curve’ back in to use and investment in

new rolling stock for Merseyrail’s 33 million plus passengers - will help deliver economic growth. It's time now for a step change in the debate on connecting the Northern Powerhouse, no longer asking what others can do for Liverpool, but reframing our position to make clear what the Liverpool city region can do for the North and how it can help fire the Northern Powerhouse.

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Connecting the Northern Powerhouse

The North West: where science and innovation flourish

Accenture MD Fiona Gibson discusses the driving force and the positive effects of Liverpool's economic growth

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HEN Accenture set out to produce a business prospectus for the North West of England, Discovery to Delivery, we set out with a great deal of confidence.

Having worked in the region since 1982, we have firsthand experience of the dynamics that are driving economic growth - the acclaimed academic institutions, the wealth of graduate talent and the excellent digital and transport links. As our research progressed, the magnitude of these strengths and what it means for businesses in the science and technology sector in the North West became increasingly clear.

Using quantitative analysis alongside a series of interviews and workshops with over 20 senior figures in business, academia, and the public sector we identified five compelling strengths of the North West which provide business with specific and distinct capabilities. It is these strengths and how they

each connect with each other that really sets the North West apart from the rest of the country and Europe.

The first strength of the North West is that it offers a seamless innovation value chain – or innovation engine - that provides access to the capabilities to progress product or service development from research through to commercialisation, all within easy reach. Research and development, demonstration, testing and clinical trials, manufacture and production, distribution, launch, marketing and sales are all supported in the region.

It is one reason why Unilever, a longstanding investor in the North West, has brought ten new products to market, all within the region from initial discovery of the chemical compound and part of the reason why they are increasing their investment in the region through their Integrated High Throughput Formulation Centre in

Liverpool.

The North West is also an internationally recognised research hub, positioning the region at the cutting edge of innovation with the research expertise and track record to support new, and worldleading thinking.

Over 80per cent of research in the region is judged to be ‘world leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’, and a staggering 34 Nobel Prize winners hail from this area of the country.

Cutting the cost and time of R&D is the VEC@Hartree, a new strategic partnership between the Virtual Engineering Centre and the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s £37.5 million Hartree Centre. The Centre is home to the world’s fastest supercomputer dedicated to software development. With both facilities located at Sci-Tech Daresbury, VEC@Hartree is helping showcase how the region is continuing to help push business forward in terms of innovation and

development.

Such ventures become possible because the region has a thriving innovation ecosystem with cross-sector and cross industry relationships creating unrivalled collaborations between academia, public investment and private enterprise. It brings to bear leading talent, experience in accessing funding streams, and the ability to team with likeminded organisations.

Innovation campuses, such as Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter and Sci-Tech Daresbury are great examples of how this collaboration is helping drive increased investment.

A further strength is the region’s high quality talent which brings great opportunity to both small and large businesses within the area. The region supports 11 universities with a student population of over 225,000, including more than 22,000 international students.

Finally, the Prospectus outlines how the North West is

physically and digitally connected to the rest of the world, creating a world-class gateway to other regions, cities, and markets.

Manchester Airport is the only UK airport, outside of London Heathrow, which has direct flights to China, creating a major business advantage available to the North West. The region also boasts strong regional and national connections, with over 100 trains a day running to London, giving businesses the benefit of both local strengths, in addition to being able to draw on ideas and expertise globally.

The combination of these strengths can be seen clearly through the North West’s growing reputation at the forefront of digital content innovation.

Liverpool John Moores University has an important partnership with Mersey Television and the North West is home to Sony Computer Entertainment and Warner Brothers TT Games. It is estimated that one third of the world's auto-related

Juergen Maier, CEO of Siemens UK and Ireland and NWBLT Chairman, Fiona Gibson, Managing Director, Accenture North West, Geoffrey Piper, Chief Executive, North West Business Leadership Team

digital games are made in Liverpool, while the North West’s digital and creative sector is the second largest in Europe – 31,000 businesses employ 321,000 people in the sector estimated to be worth £16 billion.

In a global economy, successful innovation capability is pivotal.

What our research demonstrates is that the North West has the perfect blend of ingredients as a science

and innovation hub to help solve the world’s increasingly complex challenges.

The region can play a critical role in the UK’s ability to attract global business, while helping to rebalance the national economy and build a successful ‘Northern Powerhouse’.

The next step is to ensure this message reaches a wide audience of corporate decisionmakers.

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THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2015

Connecting the Northern Powerhouse

Delivering Transport for the Northern Powerhouse L

INKING Liverpool aims to secure the delivery of an integrated transport system that drives economic growth for Liverpool and the whole of the North of England.

It is about maximising our potential, driving economic growth, confidence and momentum for the Liverpool City region and the whole of the North. It is important to all business sectors and all sizes of business, big and small.

And Liverpool has been leading the way with partners across the North.

This month’s Budget might have delivered disappointment for short term electrification across the Pennines, but the Liverpool to Manchester

Lime Street Station

line has already been electrified, delivering faster journey times for passengers for the coming years.

The budget also gave impetus to Oyster Card style integrated smart transport ticketing across the North, another welcome development.

The big news for Linking Liverpool in the longer term was the confirmation of a new £30 million budget over the next three years

to fund Transport for the North, the panNorthern transport body formed to drive forward the TransNorth east-west rail line capacity and speed investments at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse ambition.

This is welcome news for Liverpool’s ambitions, and the platform to continue to make the case for both passenger and freight capacity that puts Liverpool at the

heart of the Northern Powerhouse. In addition, further shortterm developments are also in process.

The Rail North programme is led by Merseytravel’s Chief Executive and Director General David Brown, and has recently issued the tender to upgrade the trains and service patterns on the Transpennine and Northern Rail train franchises, also challenging operators to

provide, amongst other improvements, a direct link from Liverpool to Scotland for the first time.

Business leaders from across the Liverpool City Region have pledged their support to speak with one voice with public and private sector partners through Linking Liverpool.

Over 1,000 businesses pledged support to the first phase of the campaign, joining 20,000 members of the public.

Linking Liverpool provides the single unified voice for the Liverpool City Region campaign to secure delivery of strategic transport connectivity ambitions through a collaborative and cohesive programme of advocacy.

Linking Liverpool asks...

- Delivery of the full TransNorth rail line connecting Liverpool to the other Northern Powerhouse cities - Direct high speed rail connectivity into Liverpool - Delivery of the Liverpool city region’s Transport Plan for Growth schemes, including new rolling stock for Merseyrail and connectivity to North Wales