WE MUST THINK REGIONALLY TO MAXIMISE OUR OPPORTUNITIES

Opportunity East, a new investment prospectus for the East of England, has just been published – and it’s a timely reminder of how well placed our region is to take advantage of growth opportunities, how important it is to be proactive in encouraging investors into the region – and how we in Norfolk must look beyond the county’s borders if we want to enjoy a share of the spoils, writes Nick O'Leary.

The new document, which has been produced by a consortium led by the Inward Investment Working Group for the East of England, sets out ten key reasons for investing in the region, and many of them are directly relevant to our own county. 

These include ‘Powering the Nation’, with offshore wind farms already supplying energy to one in three UK homes; ‘Food Security Champion’, with the region boasting a third of the UK’s farmland as well as leadership in agri-tech; ‘Creative and Digital Boom’, with Norfolk playing a major part in the region’s fast-growing digital sector; ‘Advanced Manufacturing Hub’, with developments such as Hethel Engineering Centre hosting world-leading engineering companies; and, of course ‘Great Place to Live and Grow’, which needs no explanation when it comes to our county.

The document identifies 51 drivers of innovation across the six counties which make up the East of England; 11 of these are in Norfolk, more than in Cambridgeshire, with centres of excellence in life sciences, agri-tech, advanced manufacturing and creative industries.

It is all too easy to talk our county and our region down, but as the prospectus points out, the East of England punches above its weight, is a net contributor to the UK economy, and plays a vital role in powering national growth.  Despite last week’s news that growth has stalled in the UK overall, the major sectors which drive our region’s economy are all still expanding.

It is not hyperbole when the prospectus calls the region ‘a powerhouse of innovation and industry, driving UK economic growth’.

The region has 11.3% of the UK’s population, yet delivers 18% of the nation’s total R&D spend, with 63% of jobs in knowledge-intensive or tech-driven sectors (way above the UK’s average of 51%).

Here in Norfolk we can sometimes be a little inward-looking, but this document makes clear that we need to accept that we are part of a wider region, and we are unlikely to attract the inward investment we need if we try to act in isolation.