Northern Powerhouse minister rallies business

Northern Powerhouse Minister Andrew Percy issued a rallying cry for the North of England at the recent visit to the North-west and Manchester

Mr Percy, gave a keynote speech at the UK Northern Powerhouse International Conference and Exhibition in Manchester , he said the Government was investing billions of pounds into Northern businesses to create an economy that works for everyone.

He said: “The Northern Powerhouse is home to more than 15 million people and one million businesses, seven international airports and some of the world’s top universities. Our economy was worth £316 billion in 2015 – similar to the whole of Belgium – but we want to go further….

“That’s why we’re investing billions of pounds to back businesses in the North and create an economy that works for everyone. I look forward to continuing to work with local leaders to ensure the North goes from strength to strength.”

What is the Northern Powerhouse ?

The 556m has been allocated from the Local Growth Fund cash pot of 1.8bn, announced in the Autumn Statement, and will be handed to 11 Local Enterprise Partnerships across the north.

It is part of a wider scheme aimed at boosting the post-Brexit UK economy and creating jobs, with a particular focus on investment in science, research and innovation.

Mr Percy said the plans, was about building a "truly global Britain".

How much money will each Local Enterprise Partnership receive? Greater Manchester: £1m Liverpool City Region: £72m Leeds City Region: £5m North Eastern: £7m Cumbria: £7m Tees Valley: £8m York, North Yorkshire, East Riding: £7m Lancashire: £8m Humber: £9m Sheffield City Region: £8m Cheshire and Warrington: £3m In addition to Andrew Percy attending the Northern powerhouse , China came too . Jin Xu, minister counsel of the economic and commercial office of the Chinese embassy in London, led a Chinese delegation that included the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the China Chamber of Commerce UK.

Jin said: "The Northern Powerhouse has attached great importance to Chinese investment….Chinese investors are looking into infrastructure, healthcare, innovation, education, tourism, and, of course, real estate-prices are much lower in the north than in the London area."

Attending the Expo was Ms May Liu, international projects director at the China-UK Business Centre (Northwest), said there was a noticeable increase in Chinese interest at this year's conference and development opportunities . Liu said: "The northern region was previously not that well-known in China. That's changing. Today, we were approached by several businesses who visited our stall and asked about investment opportunities in the Blackpool , Fylde and Lancashire area.." The conference was the biggest cross-sectoral gathering of Northern businesses in the UK. Topics addressed during the conference included manufacturing, transport and infrastructure, finance and delivery, devolution, competitiveness , productivity and energy. Now looking forward to February 2018 and the next Northern powerhouse expo.