Delighted to be part of annual Newcastle University debate on Northern Powerhouse and progress made

I was recently involved in an excellent and lively debate on the North-South, post-Brexit divide with Newcastle University and Res Publica. This is an annual Newcastle University event. The key points from the discussion were:

• SME-University collaboration  

• The skills gap 

• Devolution and double devolution  

• Metro-mayors 

• Transport infrastructure: HS2 and HS3 

• Productivity  

• The Northern Powerhouse  

Crucially, the conclusion of much of the discussion was that the efforts behind the Northern Powerhouse initiative is an ongoing processes rather than single events, and that silver bullets for the problem do not exist. 

There has been considerable progress since 2010: the Northern Powerhouse,cross-regional cooperation in health, tourism, transport and so on have been key levers and we are already seeing the green shoots of change. The greatest increase in the economically active population has been in the North East. The greatest increase in employment has been in the North East. 

But as the Chancellor Philip Hammond made very clear: we cannot rest on our laurels and we have a long way to go to solve the issue. There are political obstacles along the way: whilst the Greater Manchester area has embraced devolution and these forms of cooperation, integration and synergy, many other areas, including parts of the North East have so far backed off from embracing devolution. 

This is going to need cross business, government, academic, and local political cooperation and action but conversations have been and continue to be very positive. There was much optimism on this issue in the room, and I believe, quite rightly.

Visiting Egger to see how the apprentice training programme is going

It was great to revisit Egger several years on from when Michael Egger and I opened the apprentice academy. It is clearly going really well and providing priceless training to the local engineers and various other specialists that are needed to keep Hexham's key employer up and running. There is no doubt that all the local apprentices I met were really enthusiastic about working there. A really uplifting visit. By way of flashback here is the announcement and opening many years ago:
http://guyopperman.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/egger-engineering-academy-another-step.html

Engineering in the North East - we need to be smarter and more competitive than everyone else

Two weeks I went to Global Manufacturing Supplies, an engineering firm based in Prudhoe.

http://www.gms-uk.com/

It was a fascinating visit and I learnt a lot.

As an MP I visit a lot of businesses, both locally here in Tynedale but also across the wider North East and the country as a whole. I meet everything from one man [or woman] bands to huge employers like Egger, OGN, SCA and Nissan. The really interesting businesses, however, are the ones in the middle: these are the ones that we need to thrive and survive. These are the SMEs that really drive our economy, and none more so than in the North East.  

In addition, on a regular basis I meet with the North East Chamber of Commerce, the Local Enterprise Partnership and other support organisations to find out what they want from the Chancellor, and how I as a local MP can help. I hold skills fairs, and jobs fairs like the one last week to do my bit and get young and old further and better employment: http://guyopperman.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/jobs-fair-today-10-4pm-at-beaumont-in.html

I come from an engineering background. My family were engineers and gear manufacturers who started in a single room London basement: http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Opperman_Gears  

Albeit, I accept that I am no engineer, the business of engineering and manufacturing - and the challenges of doing this in the global age - fascinate me. More importantly in the North East these types of businesses create and sustain a key part of our economy.

I can talk the talk that

- UK employment numbers are the best in Europe,

- that our unemployment is half that of France and our Euro competitors,

- that youth unemployment is down

- that apprenticeships locally have doubled

- and that FE providers like Kirkley Hall have seen their numbers go from 300 to 900  

But to misquote Jane Austen it is a truth universally acknowledged by some manufacturers that cheap imports are making it tough to compete in the global market. So how can we survive in a global world? To an extent this is right - if a core commodity is cheaper to produce elsewhere the customer tends to buy from the cheaper producer. Twas ever thus. But where we in the UK, and in Tynedale, are getting clever is our approach to competitiveness, and innovation.  The defining characteristic of GMS is their ability to provide competitive solutions to established manufacturing companies. This is a classic example of British innovation tackling a traditional industry and producing a company that is innovative and radical. It also employs over 25people in Prudhoe, supports a lot of good local causes as part of its commitment to the local area, and makes a profit. I am pictured with Owen and Andrew outside the premises. An interesting morning.

 

The return of real Apprenticeships - up in every part of the NE

I am pleased there has been a substantial rise in the numbers of apprenticeships being offered to young people in the North East.

I am passionate about apprenticeships and vocational education. They are important to help our young people find the jobs they deserve and for improving the skills of our Nation’s workforce. As such, I like many other small businesses, employ an apprentice, Jade, who has been with us in our Hexham office since 2011 and is an important and valued member of our team.

In Hexham we have seen a huge rise in the numbers of apprenticeships which is great news for young people starting out in the working world and businesses alike. Specifically there has been a 62.8% rise in the number of apprenticeship starts in Hexham from 2009/10 to 2012/13 [the last full year for stats].
This is not a pattern exclusive to Hexham, however:
- throughout the North East this pattern of success is repeated with increases in apprenticeship starts ranging all the way up to 143.1%. Overall the North East is the country's second biggest percentage increase in apprenticeship starts; at the national level we have already delivered 1.8 million new apprenticeships since 2010.
The full chart is here:
Parliamentary Constituency and % increase on apprenticeship starts from 2009/10 (Labour) to 2012/13 (Last full year under Coalition)

Berwick upon Tweed 98.0
Bishop Auckland 143.1
Blaydon 89.8
Blyth Valley 107.6
City of Durham 120.0
Darlington 132.3
Easington 111.1
Gateshead 73.5
Hartlepool 85.1
Hexham 62.8
Houghton and Sunderland South 63.4
Jarrow 73.0
Middlesbrough 95.6
Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland 90.6
Newcastle upon Tyne Central 80.8
Newcastle upon Tyne East 82.4
Newcastle upon Tyne North 67.7
North Durham 104.6
North Tyneside 83.1
North West Durham 121.0
Redcar 121.2
Sedgefield 115.8
South Shields 86.4
Stockton North 109.0
Stockton South 120.0
Sunderland Central 60.0
Tynemouth 86.4
Wansbeck 111.1
Washington and Sunderland West 71.6

I congratulate all who were involved in this increase and encourage those employers who have yet to hire one of our fabulous young people to do so. You won’t regret it!

2013 Year in Review: January and February

January got off to a snowy start which saw us campaigning ankle deep in the snow for the coming Local Elections. It was also the month I raised the prospect of us having to have Border Controls if Scotland goes independent and our support for the opening of Gilsland station came another step closer to reality. January was also when I lost a great friend and inspiration in Dr Alan Reece. It also saw myself and hundreds of locals pack into Snods Edge Village Hall to discuss the Whittonstall Opencast proposals, an issue that will rumble on into next year. Reform to Constituency boundaries was defeated 334 - 292. Labour's scare stories on University admission were undermined when it was revealed UCAS applications from those from disadvantaged backgrounds has also risen to the highest ever on record at 19.5%.

Picture: Campaigning all year round - in all weathers in Hexham!!

February:
We started off February with a visit from Skills Minister Mathew Hancock to our Apprenticeship Summit, which I organised at Kirkley Hall. February was also the month I voted for the Same Sex Marriage Bill. On the 8th February Anne Marie Trevellyan was selected as the Conservative candidate for Berwick upon Tweed at the 2015 General Election; since then the incumbent Sir Alan Beith has announced his retirement. February, as well as seeing the "Horse Meat Scandal", saw me raise the prospect of new form of local governance for Tynedale. We brought Tyneside Blonde (a beer) to Westminster, brewed by our very own Martin and the team at the Hadrian Brewery.  I was also part of the campaign to protect greenbelt land just off Piper Road in Ovingham, an issue which would come to dominate the year locally. I made one of my many visits to Albermarle Barracks; at the same time the Guardian urged it's readers to move to Hexham, describing it as "cute as a puppy's nose and handsome as Clark Gable." The Lib Dem's held Eastleigh and I ended the month holding a public meeting for residents facing difficulties with their housing provider in Haydon Bridge.
The picture below is of the Skills summit at Kirkley Hall - with the Minister, one of our winners, and her boss!

10 Good news stories in 2013 - a must read article by Fraser Nelson

http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2013/12/ten-things-that-went-badly-right-in-2013/

Transcript of Debate on creating Skills and Apprenticeships in N East

My thanks for all the help in the drafting; the full transcript is here:
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/whall/?id=2013-11-27a.93.0&s=speaker%3A24962#g93.1

My thanks for help writing the speech on creating skills and apprenticeships in the N East

My thanks to everyone who has got in touch with ideas, opinions, comments and contributions, in particular Accenture's Bob Paton, Ross Smith of the NECC, the team behind the Adonis Report, the local employers like SCA, the team at the Department for Business, the FSB, and even the team at the Department for Education who heards about the debate and were keen to plug their early years apprenticeship bursary scheme.
Bob Paton is both my constituent, and the key driver of the dramatic rise in apprenticeship numbers at Accenture in the North East. He took specific time out of his busy schedule to come to Westminster to brief me today.
The debate is 11am in westminster hall. Still drafting as I update the blog - the key is to try and condense all that there is to say on such a subject into less than 15 minutes, which is the time limit of the speech.  

Egger Engineering Academy - another step in the skills revolution

There is so much that is happening on skills, apprenticeships and training in the North East at the moment. Ten days ago I helped Michael Egger open his new Academy in Hexham. It is incredible and full of locals people learning key skills in their home town. I add this on to the great work of Northumberland College, the doubling in apprentice numbers locally, and the many chances being created by local businesses and I see local jobs being created in niche engineering and specialist skills that will provide the growth we need. I met several of the lads who are in their early stages of the apprenticeships and they were all loving it.
Full story here: http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk/news/egger-unveils-4m-investment-at-hexham-site-1.1092925

Opening Engineering Facility and Training Academy opening at EGGER on Friday

Hexham will see new jobs, apprenticeships, and investment in both an academy and local people unveiled this Friday. I am very excited to be part of this opening. EGGER employ over 500 people locally and is the key employer in west Tynedale. I have been round the site many times and met the teams.
EGGER is the largest manufacturing employer in all of Northumberland and is part of a Europe wide business. They have invested tens of millions of pounds into the the Hexham site in recent years.
The site provides one of the most technically advanced wood particleboard plants in Europe.


The opening of our new Engineering Facility and Training Academy will help develop skills, and underlines the companies commitment to investing in the area, their ongoing operations and their employees.
The training academy will allow them to continue developing apprenticeship, graduate and employee training schemes.
The way out of the recesssion is through good local businesses investing in their site, their products and most of all their people. I am really pleased for everyone involved and looking forward to meeting all the employees on Friday.