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North East exceeds economic expectations

A new report investigating economic growth rates for North East England has found that the region has exceeded targets set four years ago. The North East Assembly commissioned the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) to find out if the economic growth targets first set in 2003 remain relevant today.

The report provides an assessment of the region’s performance against a number of scenarios developed five years ago. Using new economic information, CEBR found that the predicted 2.8 per cent economic growth rate for the region is still viable.

Cllr Dave Ledger, chair of the Assembly’s development board, said: “This report illustrates that the recent performance of the North East economy has improved further than we had originally planned for. “The analysis confirms that the region has come close to achieving ‘catch-up’ with the United Kingdom after many years of relative underperformance and we have been able to surpass 2.8 per cent annual growth in recent years.”

Phil Jones, planning manager at the Assembly, said: “The North East economy appears to have undergone a structural shift in recent years, which has enabled it to move towards the sectors of finance and business services, and away from the traditional dependence on manufacturing and the public sector.

The economic growth of the region has meant a substantial increase in the number of jobs, which has led to rapid improvements in both the economic activity rate and the unemployment rate.“

The report is available to download on the North East Assembly’s website at www.northeastassembly.gov.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .