Collaboration will continue on the Humber when the local enterprise partnership is dissolved, chairman Stephen Parnaby OBE has assured the region’s business community.
The huge energy, decarbonisation and the ports agendas will be passed to the Humber Leadership Board, a committee featuring the four local authority leaders and chairs of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP and soon-to-emerge Hull and East Riding LEP.
It will also inherit the Local Industrial Strategy - still with the government having had its progress halted by last December’s election which changed the estuary’s political landscape.
Mr Parnaby said: “Our economic future lies in collaboration across the Humber Estuary, working together to get the most of the big opportunities coming our way. Over the last few years the North Bank and South Bank have been working more closely together, in which the LEP has played a major role, and that has been a good thing for everyone, particularly for the future."
Reflecting on the government decision on single LEP representation, which led to the split set for April 1, 2021, he said: “Our priority must now be to support the smooth transition. This may not be the outcome that many people wanted but we need to make it work in the best interests of the area, and I encourage everyone to get involved.
“The legacy we leave as a Humber LEP is a region of much clearer economic identity, sense of purpose and a reason for being. The Energy Estuary is snow well established, and what we and the organisations we work with have started, will continue to grow.
“A region with a plan acting on its opportunities.”
Of the Local Industrial Strategy, a significant piece of work in the year under review at the virtual annual meeting, Mr Parnaby told how “it will live on as a plan for the Humber Estuary, to be owned by the leadership board,” stating it will be launched soon.
“There is a clear agenda and a set of actions and I am confident the business sector will be involved with the leadership board to ensure the private sector’s voice is heard.”
Mr Parnaby told how formation and recruitment for the Hull and East Yorkshire LEP board will begin shortly, with Arco joint managing director Thomas Martin “bringing forward a business voice to support it,”.
The meeting heard how the Humber’s economy was thriving prior to the coronavirus pandemic, with the highest growth and employment rates.
The claimant count had been at 20,000, and almost doubled to 40,000 through April and May, levelling off at that level, which now remains.
Describing it as an “economic shock as well as a health emergency,” Mr Parnaby said the “economy will look different” when we emerge.
“Despite the recent welcome announcement of a vaccine, there is still a long way to go,” he said. “This region now has one of the highest figures in the country for people affected by coronavirus. When we do come out of this our economy will look different.
“There are reasons to be optimistic, more than most places we really do have a 24/7 economy here. The refineries, the chemical sector and ports never stop. Like we always do, the Humber helps keep the lights on, and essential goods moving in and out of the country.
“Some significant parts of our manufacturing sector, such as the caravan industry, were initially hit hard but have come back stronger and are already growing again.
“The big opportunities we were all talking about before the pandemic – in offshore wind, industrial decarbonisation and developing a freeport – haven’t gone away. In fact, work has continued on them throughout, and – as we’ve seen from recent announcements – the Humber is proving to be an attractive proposition for inward investment on that.
“There is more on the horizon and the signs are good. When it comes to the kind of clean growth that will help the UK ‘build back better’ from Covid, nowhere has greater potential than the Humber and that is well understood by industry and government.
“The sense of community we have here, and people’s willingness to help each other out, has never been more important.”
He added that “Brexit will be a massive challenge for everyone, particularly new organisations coming to the fold,” adding “I am confident we have the people at all levels who will maximise our opportunities.”
Chief executive Kishor Tailor presented the numbers, outlining £335 million of public investment to date, with £204 million worth of projects completed, leveraging a further £390 million in private funds. It has led to 7,161 jobs of which 564 were in the period in review, which had also brought more than £24 million in combined infrastructure, skills and housing investment.
A total of 43 companies are now on secured enterprise zones, with 1,800 new jobs.
Emerging projects including Arco’s new headquarters in Hull, Croda’s distribution centre and Siemens Mobility’s new train facility - both at Goole - were highlighted.
