People who have not visited Sunderland recently may have been surprised at the news on Thursday that Nissan is investing 1bn into a futuristic electric vehicle hub in the city.
Known for its heavy industry and shipbuilding history, Sunderland is overshadowed by its industrial past and may not be the first place that comes to mind when imagining the future of manufacturing. But it should be, according to Patrick Melia, chief executive of Sunderland city council. Its a transforming city, he said.
Between the council and national government, 100m is being invested into a hi-tech manufacturing park adjacent to the Nissan plant, which before the announcement from the Japanese carmaker was expected to generate between 500m and 600m of investment from the private sector. With the 423m from Nissan and 450m from battery maker Envision, this target has already been smashed.
We need to be enablers as a local authority. We dont always have a lot of cash to put in but what we have is expertise, and we know how to bring businesses to Sunderland and benefit the wider north-east region, Melia said.
The Brexit effect, which some Remainers had gleefully wished upon Leave-voting Sunderland, has failed to materialise here. Though there is still uncertainty about food production due to shortages of factory, agricultural and haulage workers issues that exist throughout the UK Sunderland seems to have come out largely unscathed.
Despite this, challenges remain, with unemployment higher than the national average and pay significantly lower, at a time when the city is suffering from higher rates of Covid-19 infections than the country at large.
Already struggling before the pandemic struck, Sunderland ranked in the top 20 local authorities in Britain for employment deprivation, according to government figures.
The percentage of the workforce claiming unemployment-related benefits had shot up to 7.3% by May this year, compared with a UK average of 6%. And despite progress in recent months as lockdown measures were gradually relaxed across the country, about a tenth of the local workforce is still on furlough.
And yet Sunderland has ambitious plans. In 2023, the city is holding its Future Living Expo, which will showcase 5G-enabled, renewable-energy-powered homes of the future, 1,000 of which are currently planned for Sunderland, built off-site outside the city and assembled in four new neighbourhoods in the north of the city centre.
They will be more sustainable, and the smartest homes in the UK when we build them, Melia said. So were on a transformational journey and you need things like [Nissans investment] to underpin all of that.
In 2019, the financial services company Legal & General pledged 100m to the citys regeneration efforts, aiming to create grade-A office space at Riverside Sunderland, an urban quarter to the north of the city on the bank of the River Wear.
Work on the project will begin next month, at the site of the former Vaux Breweries, which closed in 1999. The site has been empty for two decades, partly due to numerous planning rows for Tesco, which had tried to build a superstore there, until it was bought by the council in 2011.
Legal & Generals chief executive, Nigel Wilson, himself a north-east native, said there were massive shifts going on in the region as it responded to the emergence of green tech and the rise in renewable energy. The companys investment in Sunderland was about seizing a genuine opportunity, he said one that was missed at the turn of the millennium, when the UK failed to support fledgling tech companies and lost ground to the US and China.
He said: We missed the boat. However, this next wave of technology is coming along incredibly quickly.
Legal & General has put 22bn of pensions money into projects such as urban regeneration, clean energy and transport infrastructure across the UK. Weve been saying this for many, many years and weve been practising it for many, many years. But its now become trendy and popular.
Wilson said business had been the catalyst for change in Sunderland but he believed the government had also been supportive.
For a lot of things, [the private sector] can do it, and then there are certain things where the government needs to pump-prime, to be frank.
With taxpayer money underpinning the investment at Nissan, the governments levelling-up rhetoric now has a ring of reality to it here. The sums committed are small but symbolic, suggesting that the interventionist approach that characterised postwar industrial policy is back in fashion.
Within the city, companies still feel a strong attachment to their home turf, determined to resist what is often described as the magnetic pull of the south-east.
At Keel Square, across the road from the Vaux Breweries site, is the new 6.4m head office of Hays Travel, a Sunderland success story.
Founded by John Hays in 1980, the company has grown to become the UKs largest independent travel agent, with a workforce of 500 at the Sunderland head office and 7,000 elsewhere in the UK. It made headlines most recently when it bought the retail arm of Thomas Cook after the holiday giant went bust in 2019.
Dame Irene Hays, the owner and chair of the company, said she and her late husband John, who died suddenly last November, never considered moving the business elsewhere.
We have for 41 years attributed our success to the loyalty, commitment, skills and flexibility of the thousands of lovely people we have been able to employ and develop from this area, she said.
Sunderland was an attractive place to relocate, she said, due to its beautiful coastline and thriving cultural scene which meant the company had been able to recruit a diverse and adaptable workforce.
Part of that cultural scene is the Sunderland Empire, the biggest theatre in the region and the only one that can accommodate the largest touring West End shows.
It directly employs more than 100 people and, with 300,000 visitors in a typical year, supports many further jobs in hospitality around the city. The Empire has been closed for more than a year, with almost all of its staff furloughed, but the box office is open and already taking bookings for the winter-season pantomimes.
The theatres director, Marie Nixon, said the optimism felt by the council and business was translating into a thriving cultural sector, albeit one that had been hit hard by the pandemic. While it remains to be seen what the lasting effects of lockdown will be, Sunderland is creating more opportunities than ever before for artistic types who might have left the city for the brighter lights of Newcastle, Leeds or further south.
Im feeling really optimistic, said Nixon. I think we just need what everybody needs and thats some certainty.
Continued here:
Sunderland is coming up shining, despite Brexit and the pandemic - The Guardian
- Its clearer than ever that Brexit has failed lets not inflict its miseries on young people - The Guardian - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- 'I might as well stop and diversify into holiday lets' new research reveals the reality of farming after Brexit - The Conversation - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- French bank to close dozens of Britons' accounts citing Brexit - The Connexion - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- UK-US trade deal 'could be easier' with Donald Trump in the White House, says Lord Frost - Express - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Labour's Brexit conundrum - The Week - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Post-Brexit UK Risks Being 'Left Out In The Cold' As EU Coordinates Action On Shortages - Pink Sheet - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Brussels wants post-Brexit talks with UK on new youth mobility rights - POLITICO Europe - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Ravaged by austerity, chastened by Brexit: how can Britain have influence abroad when its broken at home? - The Guardian - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Sunak rejects offer of youth mobility scheme between EU and UK - The Guardian - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Brexit, austerity and how Labour could fix Britain - Tortoise - Tortoise Media - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- NYSE considers 24/7 trading; Goldman Sachs moves senior banker to Paris amid post-Brexit overhaul - The Banker - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- EU Delighted by Prospect of UK Labour Reneging on Brexit - The European Conservative - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Reverse the Brexit fiasco! - Workers' Liberty - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- The writing is on the wall Starmer and Brussels will undo Brexit - The Telegraph - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- UK to delay start of health and safety checks on EU imports report - The Guardian - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Journalist Asks David Cameron Outright If Rwanda Bill Is A Consequence Of Brexit - HuffPost UK - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- 'We retired to Spain after Brexit and it's much cheaper - the UK seems miserable' - inews - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- The EU would rather destroy the planet than let Brexit succeed - The Telegraph - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- War heroes and Brexit: Why Greeks will always love the British - The Telegraph - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- WATCH: Castletownbere fishermen to feature in documentary on impact of Brexit | Southern Star - The Southern Star - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Britons told their French bank accounts 'are being closed due to Brexit' - inews - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Post-Brexit border controls delayed again in the UK - hortidaily.com - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- UK rejects mobility agreement with Europe to help young people travel and live abroad - The Independent - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- EU proposing post-Brexit joint youth work and study scheme with UK - Sky News - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Brexit border checks will start from 30 April - Fruitnet - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Lord of the Rings star Dominic Monaghan says 'Brexit was a con' and urges others to take action - Manchester Evening News - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- The EU has finally admitted it needs Britain more than we need it - The Telegraph - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- The Brexit revelations: May's no-deal, a Canada plan and mating porcupines - The Times - April 24th, 2024 [April 24th, 2024]
- Italian citizens bank accounts frozen owing to shameful post-Brexit rules - The Guardian - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- EU Policy. UK hails financial access deal with Switzerland after Brexit losses - Euronews - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Brexit: How the NI Protocol became the Windsor Framework - BBC.com - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- EU Approves Three-Year Delay to Post-Brexit Tariffs on EVs - OilPrice.com - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Travel chaos is 'only going to get worse' when new EU fingerprint checks come in - NationalWorld - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- British exporters call on government to ease post-Brexit trade frictions with EU - The Guardian - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Brits visiting Europe will have to give fingerprints under new rules - Metro.co.uk - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Ursula von der Leyen humiliated as UK forced major EU climbdown in Brexit car victory - Express - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Modern slavery a feature of care sector in England since Brexit - The Guardian - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- US president Joe Biden ditches trade deal talks with Britain over fears of job losses - The Independent - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Brexit inflation: The role of trade policy uncertainty in increasing UK import prices - CEPR - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- UK and EU Reach Accord on Post-Brexit Electric Car Tariff Postponement - IndiaTimes - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- How are Brexit travel restrictions easing outbound and inbound? - The Independent - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Jeremy Hunt to strike post-Brexit banking deal with Switzerland - Yahoo Finance UK - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Britain was right to Brexit | MoneyWeek - MoneyWeek - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Brexit pain could be eased for Brits with homes in France - The Independent - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- DUP talks about post-Brexit trading have ended, Northern Ireland secretary says - The Guardian - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Have voters cooled on the prospect of re-joining the EU? - UK in a Changing Europe - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Brexit will really start to bite us in 2024. How ready are you? - The Independent - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- UK ditches company working time rules in further post-Brexit red tape cuts - City A.M. - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Sovereignty, economy, immigration: still the three pillars of the Brexit ... - UK in a Changing Europe - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Just because Brexit isnt on the frontpages, doesnt mean its settled - UK in a Changing Europe - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Post-Brexit EU clearing rules set for more relaxed approach - International Financing Review - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- There's trouble in store for post-Brexit Britain - The New European - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- SMEs feel the squeeze from Brexit - Financial Times - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Three years of polling on the Protocol reveals the depth of the new ... - Newswise - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- James O'Brien on post-Brexit Britain: 'This conflation of patriotism ... - The Irish Times - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- What's really behind GB News signing Boris as the voice of Brexit ... - Prospect Magazine - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Revealed: How Brexit and the Covid hangover are affecting the ... - Car Dealer Magazine - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Grayson Perry's portrait from the edge - The New European - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Bankers bonuses are back and the long 2010s dominated by Brexit ... - City A.M. - November 8th, 2023 [November 8th, 2023]
- Ports and truckers clash over post-Brexit border costs - Financial Times - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- What would the UK look like without Brexit? - The New Statesman - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- The long road of Brexit: A shifting regulatory reality - New Food - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Make-or-break moment looms for Northern Ireland's failed government - POLITICO Europe - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Barry Jones The Voice is our Brexit moment - The Saturday Paper - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Mark Carney Has Delivered A Stunning Takedown Of Brexit And Liz Truss - Yahoo Movies UK - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- It's not just the 'Remainers' whingeing Britain really is broken - The Australian Financial Review - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- UK SMEs not ready for 'avalanche' of Brexit 2.0 rules and taxes - Financial Times - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Brexit Bitterness Continues To Cloud Reporting The European Conservative - The European Conservative - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Green Brexit doesn't extend to pesticide protections - Footprint - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Theresa May says her Brexit deal was better than Boris Johnson's - POLITICO Europe - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Remainer UK civil servants were in tears over Brexit, top official says - POLITICO Europe - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- Mark Carney Has Delivered A Stunning Takedown Of Brexit And Liz Truss - Yahoo News Canada - September 17th, 2023 [September 17th, 2023]
- More Brits than ever say Brexit was wrong choice: YouGov survey - Reuters UK - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Britain's fishing industry in line for post-Brexit boost following the end of EU red tape - Daily Mail - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Tabloids are misleading their readers over Brexit at their own peril - The Media Leader - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- UK Support to Rejoin the EU Passes 50% for the First Time Since Brexit - Yahoo News - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Record Numbers of Brits Regretting Brexit, Survey Shows - SchengenVisaInfo.com - SchengenVisaInfo.com - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Almost two-thirds of Brits think Brexit has been a failure - The New European - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Five ways UK fashion industry can grow post-Brexit, Covid - just-style.com - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- British companies start to grapple with 'Brexit 2.0' - Financial Times - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]