Don’t wait for the Government or Council to set the pace, the Northern Powerhouse is your responsibility too, landlords and property developers!
The head of real estate in the north west for NatWest/RBS, Heath Thomas, has told firms in the property sector to accept the challenge at a meeting in Manchester.
The event was organised to launch the NatWest research into the Northern Powerhouse, when Thomas spoke about the challenge of creating the Northern Powerhouse and told businesses not to shy away from it.
“Yes of course there are challenges with the Northern Powerhouse – it’s become so commonly used as a buzzword it makes you wonder what the substance is.”
“It’s an evolving idea, and it is good to see the political leaders of Manchester, Liverpool and the other cities sitting on the stage together – that is a big evolution in itself.”
“The emotional issues are more easy today thanks to the Northern Powerhouse idea. But the business community has got to see the Northern Powerhouse as their responsibility – and not just something for central and local government.”
“This will be the biggest challenge for the Northern Powerhouse, for business not just to wait and complain they don’t know what’s happening, but to go and see the opportunities, and grasp them.”
However, Thomas warned that the government must still come up with the money to make sure key road and rail investment took place. He said “cheque writing” would be needed.
“They are already making progress. Setting up Transport for the North is a major step, because there is only so much money available and it needs to be spent effectively. There is progress making transport more coherent, but it is still early days.”
“We’ve seen a huge growth in lending on housing – both new developments for sale, and to rent – in Greater Manchester, and that links up to the Northern Powerhouse because it is driven by demand from national and international investors. The Northern Powerhouse hasn’t created this market, but it has added to the momentum.”
Source: Manchester Evening News
