Positive sounds over Eden at Lancashire Built Environment Conference

A senior Lancashire County Council official has welcomed the new Labour government’s 'positive mood music' around the transformational Eden project in Morecambe.

Simon Lawrence, director of growth and regeneration at County Hall, described the eco-tourism plan as an “amazing” project, not just for the seaside town but for the wider region.

Speaking at the 2024 Lancashire Built Environment Conference at Winter Gardens Blackpool, he said Eden was a “once in a lifetime generational investment opportunity” and a “catalyst for significant regeneration”.

The previous Conservative government had promised £50m for the project from its levelling up funds, with Eden having to match that. Simon told the conference that Eden had effectively reached that target through private sector funding.

He added: “We just need government to continue to demonstrate a commitment to that and that will happen over the next few weeks.”

In an interview with the BBC on the same day as the conference, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said the government would do “everything it can” to make sure the attraction comes to fruition.

However, she stopped short of offering a complete promise that the government investment would be delivered. The Labour administration has repeatedly warned of a “black hole” in the public finances.

She told BBC Radio Lancashire: “We want to see that investment. The local people in Morecambe have been really enthusiastic about it and the chancellor absolutely knows that and we will do everything we can to see what we can do to make that happen.”

The deputy PM said the government's main priority was on growth, adding: “What we can’t have is national debt where it is, and public services on their knees.”

There have been other positive signs.

In July the government pledged as much as £2.5m to aid Eden Project Morecambe in securing the services of external contractors to further develop its designs.

And speaking in August, Si Bellamy, chief transformation officer at Eden, said “all our plans remain on track” with the £100m attraction now “in the delivery phase”.

Speaking at the Built Environment Conference, Simon Lawrence also gave an update on other ‘big ticket’ projects being delivered in Lancashire and their potential impact on the county’s fortunes.

He said the new government continued to commit to National Cyber Force (NCF) coming to the county. The creation of the organisation’s national HQ has been described as a £5bn investment into the economy over the next five to 10 years, bringing thousands of jobs.

Simon said investment to deliver the new NCF headquarters in Samlesbury was already happening, with building work underway.

He told delegates at the conference: “There is lots of dialogue with government officials and ministers around how quickly we can get that to come forward.”

And he also revealed that work was progressing to create Lancashire Cricket’s second home in the heart of the county in Farington. The £20m state-of-the-art sporting facility is set to host its first game next summer.

The conference, delivered in association with Blackpool and The Fylde College, Blackpool Makes It Work, Connections2energy and Harrison Drury Solicitors, looked at a host of major regeneration projects either being delivered or planned around Lancashire.

These include the potentially ‘game-changing’ Silicon Sands data and energy masterplan at Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone and the Multiversity vision for the centre of the resort, as well as Burnley’s transformational ‘university town’ project.

Delegates heard that Preston was in the middle of delivering an ambitious £1bn investment programme that included major heritage led regeneration projects such as the £16m-plus re-invention of the Harris Museum and Library.

Pendle’s regeneration work in its town centres, including Nelson and Colne, was also highlighted, along with the success of partnership working in the borough.

Lancashire’s devolution journey was put under the microscope during the event, with the wide acknowledgement the deal struck with central government earlier this month was just a starting point.

·       Full coverage of the 2024 Lancashire Built Environment Conference will be carried in issue 119 of Lancashire Business View which will be published in early November