Shropshire Star comment: Wynn optimistic on targets for growth
The figures are impressive.
Graham Wynn, chairman of the Marches LEP, says: “We think we can grow the economy of the Marches to £23.8 billion by 2038, creating 58,700 new jobs, building 54,400 new homes and increasing productivity per head to £29,425."
That is quite an economic vision for the future for the Marches region, the borderlands area which includes the counties of Shropshire and Herefordshire.
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In tandem with that, the Local Enterprise Partnership sees a significant growth in the region's population, and a rise in local skill levels.
Where does this all come from? It's in the Marches LEP's revamped strategic economic plan.
A lot of people will look at these projections and feel that it's all very well coming up with an attractive recipe, but the proof of the pudding and all that.
When even the Treasury can get its forecasts wrong, they will be looking for firm evidence that what the Marches LEP is driving towards is practical and achievable.
If you have no idea of what the LEP does, it is a body which bills itself as driving economic growth across Herefordshire and Shropshire, including Telford & Wrekin, through investment in innovation, higher level skills, housing and business sites.
Led by the private sector, it works in partnership with business, education, and the three local authorities "to deliver thousands of homes and jobs across one of the most enterprising regions in the UK."
Nice to hear us being described like that.
The strategy is a route map to a more prosperous future, and Mr Wynn acknowledges some particular challenges. One is a lower than average proportion of young people, and another is a lower skill base than in some other areas.
As for how these advances will be achieved, the message is along the lines that working together, we can do the job. This includes improving the infrastructure of the area as a mechanism to facilitate economic growth.
Setting numerical targets helps assess progress along the road. It is a continuous process, and we have already seen advances in areas such as the increased availability of on-the-doorstep higher education in Shropshire.
The year 2038 is a long way away, and there can and probably will be a lot of economic climate change in the meantime, so maybe the targets should be mainly be seen in the context of ambition and optimism.
For the here and now, and near future, what we will want to see is the laying of the groundwork for year-on-year growth, and the building of partnerships and projects – the stoking of an emerging economic powerhouse.
