'I want businesses and workforces to thrive' - David Skaith

FOR York and North Yorkshire to get the best out of our devolution deal, collaboration is key. That is why the launch of a Manifesto for the North is so important and offers the potential to add £118 billion a year to the north’s economy by 2050.

Held in York, the launch event drew together fellow Mayors, such as Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin and Mayor of South Yorkshire Oliver Coppard, and council leaders. In our collective view, all roads to growth lead through the North and the Manifesto sets out how we will work together for the benefit of our areas, for the North, and in support of the national economy.

Key features from the manifesto, and our discussions so far, are:

Skills and innovation – by sharing our specialisms and working together, we can increase access to skills and capability for innovation, create more jobs, and better jobs that retain the amazing talent we have across the north.

Trade and investment – we can work collaboratively to map our incredible offer in the north and attract investment.

Net zero – we can build on the north’s collective strengths for clean energy capabilities to lead the UK’s net zero transition.

Transport – we will continue collaboration to drive forward a first-class transport system that meets the needs of a thriving northern economy.

People and place – supporting people and places to thrive, with an initial focus on establishing a One Creative North programme, aimed at growing the north’s creative industries.

Ties were further strengthened in the region following this launch, with the formation of a mayoral group featuring all my fellow northern mayors called The Great North, which intends to pave a way for greater devolution powers.

This is a brilliant opportunity for York and North Yorkshire, as we can make significant contributions and gain so much, all by working in collaboration.

David Skaith, Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, with representatives from the University of York, Invest in York and North Yorkshire, the Department for Business and Trade with the delegation of biotech businesses from Poland

There is so much potential in our region, something which is recognised by Schneider Electric which has shown its trust in Scarborough by announcing a £42 million investment in a new factory. This will create more than 200 high skilled jobs. It was incredible to see the progress on site earlier this month and hear more about the company’s net zero vision. We welcome investment such as this in York and North Yorkshire as we look to become a production and advanced engineering hub of excellence.

I also had the pleasure of welcoming a delegation of Polish biotech companies to York, who are planning to expand their businesses in the UK. The visit, organised by the Department for Business and Trade, brought together teams from Invest in York and North Yorkshire, North Yorkshire Council, City of York Council as well the Biorenewables Development Centre and BioYorkshire. Our region leads the way in this sector, and we are home to a wealth of research and development assets, support organisations and networks. Now is time to be confident, ambitious, and champion our region’s businesses and organisations to help drive more investment from overseas markets into the region.

Just as the Manifesto for the North has skills high on the agenda, it is among the combined authority’s key priorities too. Our devolution deal is supporting huge transformation and opportunity in how skills training and education can be delivered to people in York and North Yorkshire. Last week, I met principals from across the region to hear from them and to outline our skills work. This includes development of a new multi-million-pound skills innovation fund, a launch next month of the combined authority’s skills strategy, and working with partners as we prepare to take on responsibility of a devolved adult skills fund for our area. this will see the combined authority start commissioning adult learning in 2025.

I want businesses and their workforces in York and North Yorkshire to thrive. This means, increasing productivity and the resilience of businesses, creating more higher-quality jobs that pay higher wages and to ensure that we have a highly skilled workforce with the ambitions and skills to meet our business growth opportunities. Training and skills opportunities for our communities will play a big part in supporting this.

The meeting with principals was hosted by Askham Bryan College, a centre for agricultural education, and I was given a tour of the campus. I was impressed by the facilities for students, such as the Digital Skills Academy. Students can put on a headset and work with virtual livestock or sit inside a simulator to learn to drive a tractor, building their expertise before dealing with real-life scenarios.

These are early days for the combined authority, and for my role, but the close working taking place across the region, and the north as a whole, is great to see and will help us achieve more.

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