Swift Time Travel Improvements Needed for the North West, says the PSP
Terry Cook, chairman of the Private Sector Partners in the North West (PSP) argues that infrastructure improvements are long overdue.
“In 1834, George Stephenson (Robert Louis’ father) suggested linking both sides of Morecambe Bay by bridge. Here we are 171 years later with nothing built. Why? At £0.5 billion the cost of the project might seem large but none of that cost will come from public (i.e. taxpayers) funds and the project will be financed entirely by the private sector. The cost is insignificant when compared with a number of other infrastructure projects, particularly the enormous sum for Crossrail, a project to link East and West London by rail and the significant proportion being ‘promised’ by the Government; indeed, already over £150 million has already been contracted for feasibility studies.
Costing up to £16 billion, Crossrail is designed to move 200,000 Londoners from one side to the other at peak times. To many outside London, especially businesses suffering major transport problems in the north of England, such a huge expense is difficult to justify when such a large proportion of UK transport capital expenditure is already spent in and around London.
The high speed Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) will save at most 35 minutes on the run from London to the Channel, and the more likely saving will be just 20 minutes – an expensive period of time at £5.2 billion!
Meanwhile, here in the NW the recently completed M6 Toll has saved 45 minutes at peak periods at a cost of ‘just’ £900 million, with average times saved similar to the CTRL at 12 minutes.
Sadly, although the Toll is a real boon it doesn’t work for traffic from the SW nor does it have any effect from much north of Birmingham. Yet in the North West, from J11-20, the M6 is the busiest motorway in the country carrying 90,000 vehicles (well over 100,000 people) PER HOUR – easily comparable to Crossrail. With an expected cost of less than £5 billion it is surely a transport project with an obvious and cost effective benefit?
Current M6 congestion costs the UK over £3.5 billion pa – and much of this falls directly on the North West economy – our goods and services must move to and fro along the link. By 2010 this congestion is expected to have increased to equate to 1 week of time per year for every driver in the UK – an impact on the North West economy (and the economy of the UK overall) of over £10 billion.
In a survey of business in the West Midlands in 2004 the overwhelming majority welcomed the M6 Toll. I would be surprised if businesses in the North West didn’t give the proposed Birmingham – Manchester Toll an equally warm reception.
The alternative to road is the West Coast Main Line and its upgrade continues at a cost of £9 billion. The line was originally built in 1860 and modernised last in the 1960s – is it too much to ask for the upgrade to be accelerated? After all, why should residents of Lancashire and Cumbria be at a disadvantage travelling to their capital city compared with other Europeans when they travel by high speed link to the capital? Or business better placed in France than in the North West?
Similar arguments can be made about the proposed Barrow Bridge and the second Mersey crossing. Indeed, in the case of Barrow and West Cumbria there would be no more effective way of revitalising the local economy – and such revitalisation is absolutely essential – than the provision of a direct, fast link to the heart of the Region and beyond.
The maths is simple and the benefits obvious – to improve the economy of the North West quickly and reduce the gap between our Region and elsewhere further south we need swift improvements in the transport infrastructure.
Let’s spend: M6 Manchester Toll £5B West Coast Mainline (additional fee for swift completion) £3B Barrow Bridge £0.5B Mersey Crossing £0.5B
Total £9Bn
to improve the economy of the NW and the UK by up to £10 billion pa. Out of the £16 billion likely to be spent on Crossrail that will leave more than loose change!”
Ends – 702 words
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Private Sector Partners NW Ltd. (PSP) was formed in March 2002 to give the private sector in the North West a voice on issues of concern to businesses in the North West and an easier way for the public sector to communicate with business and industry within the region. PSP has the long term health, wealth and growth of the economy in the North West in mind. Today, the PSP represents the views of 140,000 businesses, involving 1.2 million employees. This is over a third of all businesses in the region and a third of all employees.
The following 20 organisations are members of the PSP: · Association of Chartered Certified Accountants 4,500 individuals · British Printing Industries’ Federation 350 businesses · Chartered Institute of Building 4,500 individuals · Chartered Institute of Marketing 3,100 individuals · Confederation of British Industry 2,000 businesses · Engineering Employers’ Federation, North West 800 businesses · Environmental Industries Commission 150 businesses · Federation of Small Businesses 18,000 businesses · Forum of Private Business 2,600 businesses · House Builders’ Federation 90 businesses · Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales 10,500 individuals · Institute of Directors 2,700 individuals · Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment 800 individuals · Institute of Financial Accountants 460 individuals · Institution of Electrical Engineers 8,000 individuals · Law Society 8,000 individuals · National Farmers’ Union 10,000 businesses · Road Haulage Association 1,400 businesses · Royal Institute of British Architects 1,800 individuals · Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors 9,000 individuals
There is no intention whatsoever to limit the independence of members who wish to pursue their particular interests separately from any association with the PSP.
The PSP has focused its efforts on: · Helping the Northwest Development Agency (NWDA) to develop its strategy and communications with the private sector. · Offering contact with senior people from the private sector to publicly-funded bodies · Securing the influence of businesses during the Government’s proposals for changes to legislation on planning. · Strengthening the modernisation of local government. · Creating the private sector’s exchange – a series of events for members and guests. · Submitting responses to proposals from Government. · Exploration of the private sector’s place in governance of regions · A regional conference for smaller firms · Review of socially responsible investment and corporate social responsibility · Inclusion of professions in the processes for making decisions. · A survey of businesses.
Bryan Gray, chairman of the NWDA led the first PSP Exchange in September. Marc Sussman, a former commercial counsellor in the administrations of Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, conducted a masterclass in October on doing business with America. Stephen Timms MP, Minister of State for e-commerce, was the principal speaker at a meeting sponsored by BT in November. Gary Titley MEP (and leader of Britain’s Group of Labour MEPs) considered in February opportunities for businesses in the expanded European Union, and Ivan Lewis MP, minister for skills and vocational education, presented a workshop during May. Frequent consultations on the needs of small firms in the Region have started with the Alliance for Skills and Productivity and the Small Business Service. PSP has co-operated with initiatives by the Learning and Skills Council, Lancashire and has signed an agreement with Jobcentre Plus. It has had discussions on the agenda for reform of planning with the Department for Transport, Government Office for the North West and NWDA. PSP has two places on the Programme Monitoring Committee, European Social Fund and one member on each of the Northwest Marketing Forum, Barrow Task Force and Cumbria Vision. Terry Cook is the PSP’s Chairman. A former Regional Manager of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and Regional Director of the Institute of Directors, Terry took over the role of chairman from PSP founder, Len Collinson.
Press Contact: Jane Harrad-Roberts Consultant Director, Marketing Projects Email: jane@marketingprojects.co.uk Mobile: 07785 395705 Tel: 01244 330000 Press hotline: 01244 330101 Additional comments available from: Terry Cook Chairman, Private Sector Partners NW Ltd. Email: Buccaneer.Consulting@blueyonder.co.uk Mobile: 07876 035934
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