Andrew Percy's rallying call for the Northern Powerhouse

Northern Powerhouse Minister Andrew Percy today called on the North to come together to tackle the “massive” challenges facing the region.

And he spelled out those challenges, pointing to the need to increase productivity, boost skills levels and retain graduates in the region.

He said: “It is intolerable that it takes commuters longer to get from Cheshire to Doncaster than it takes to get from London to Cheshire in the first place. That’s a check on investment in the North.”

Andrew Percy stresses the importance of culture in a successful Northern Powerhouse #northernpowerhouse17 https://t.co/eLjjzrND55 pic.twitter.com/ttzKdmDY66

— Move Commercial (@MoveCommercial) February 22, 2017

And he said that there had been strong successes, including new investment in the region, including in transport.

The Minister told delegates at Manchester Central: “There are massive challenges when it comes to productivity, skills levels; graduate retention is still a big issue. The government is determined to address that.”

He said the Northern Powerhouse message was finding an audience and gaining traction globally. He added: “We will continue the quite aggressive work overseas to attract inward investment, which is essential for creating jobs.”