Raising West Yorkshire producitivy would boost the regional economy by 10%

Raising productivity levels in West Yorkshire to the national average would boost the regional economy by 10% , the chair of its combined authority has told our West Yorkshire Economic Growth Conference. Delivering an opening keynote speech at the event, Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe said lagging productivity is the key factor pulling down incomes in the area compared to the national average.

She said: “Ninety per cent of the prosperity gap is down to productivity levels. Raising productivity levels to the national average would add ten per cent to regional GDP.”

Hinchcliffe, who is also leader of Bradford Council, said that to help redress this gap, the combined authority has launched a pilot programme to help local businesses boost their productivity.

Firms are invited to bid for capital grants of between £25,000 and £100,000 from the £500,000 available in the Leeds City Region Productivity Fund. She said: “The information from the pilots will help to drive up productivity.”
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Hinchcliffe said decisions are also required on major transport investments, including the go ahead for the planned Northern Powerhouse Rail scheme that is designed to improve links between the north’s major cities with new lines and upgrades of existing ones.

Hinchcliffe said: “The combined authority is concentrating on the strategic transport problems that have acted as a brake on the region’s ambitions: we need major investment in the strategic transport network.”

In the meantime, the combined authority is investing in improvements in the region’s transport network, including £47m in park and ride schemes and £18m for bus links across West Yorkshire.

She said that projects already undertaken by the combined authority and the local enterprise partnership included 4,000 apprenticeships and a new railway station at Kirkstall Forge in Leeds

And Hinchcliffe said the region can take pride in having the “fastest growing” private sector in the country and Leeds’ inclusion in the final shortlist of the three cities to host the new headquarter for Channel 4, the winner of which is due to be chosen shortly.

But all parts of the region must benefit from growth, she said: “We can’t be successful unless all parts are working at maximum: Bradford has to be successful for the whole of the north to be successful. To be successful we can’t have parts of the country not succeeding. The combined authority is aware of challenges confronting the region but we are not daunted.”
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