Active Profile's Managing Director Anna Heyes on how the events of the last few weeks could impact on the Northern Powerhouse.
So, as Osborne waves goodbye as Chancellor and we welcome a new PM and cabinet, what may this hold in store for the North?
Although some questioned the substance behind the Northern Powerhouse, no one can deny that, in a relatively short space of time, the cities of the North have created a dialogue unheard of in times gone by.
As ‘one voice’ the North has articulated the requirements for growth and has been clear about the challenges that lie ahead and investment needed. This is a good thing, surely.
Even sceptics would smile when saying this was just Osborne's bid for PM further down the line. My response was always “so be it” if the regions get what they need but sadly, as many seem to have known, it might well hit the buffers.
As we listened to the bold words of our new PM outside Downing Street yesterday, I can’t help but feel she was missing a vital piece of the puzzle - the role of our regions. Whilst the union between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is key, so too is giving our regions more control through devolution. A ‘united’ voice worked for the Northern Powerhouse and we can only hope Philip Hammond speaks in the same language.
And our new PM has a lot to do. If I was taking decisions about my strategy I'd look at those elements that were working and those that were not. My time would be spent addressing critical issues such as European exit Article 50 issues and fixing our housing market before tinkering with initiatives that broadly speaking were on track...but then that's me! I wouldn't have picked up the phone to Boris either!
Let's see what our new leaders have in store for the short term. But one thing we can be certain of given the past few weeks is, Theresa May doesn't have an easy task on her hands, and for that I applaud her for taking the reigns.
