CBI Welcomes Dan Jarvis as new Sheffield City Region Mayor

The CBI has welcomed the election of Dan Jarvis as the first elected mayor for Sheffield City Region and is encouraging him to make increasing productivity the cornerstone of his economic vision in the coming months.

CBI analysis shows that if Yorkshire and Humber’s productivity grew at the same pace as the region’s best performing area did between 2004 and 2014, the gain to its economy could be £13.5 billion by 2024. Data compiled for the CBI’s Unlocking Regional Growth report previously identified that Yorkshire and Humber’s productivity is 32.5% lower than London.

And improvements to infrastructure have an important role to play. In Yorkshire and the Humber, less than half of firms are fully satisfied with the state of their infrastructure, and 56% believe further devolution could help it improve (see Notes to Editors for regional infrastructure priorities).

Beckie Hart, CBI Yorkshire and Humber Director, said:

“The new mayor will have responsibility for growing the region’s economy at a critical time for both Sheffield City Region and the UK as a whole.

“Working in partnership with businesses of all sizes and sectors from across the area will help establish priorities for raising productivity, such as improvements in infrastructure and education. This matters as increasing productivity is the only sustainable route to higher wages, and therefore living standards.

“We look forward to working closely with Dan Jarvis as he develops his economic vision in the coming months to help unlock more jobs, investment and prosperity for the region as a whole.”

Notes to Editors:

Yorkshire and Humber infrastructure priorities, as outlined in the CBI’s Shaping Regional Infrastructure report:

• An aviation strategy that maximises the potential of the region’s airport
• Making the region’s infrastructure more resilient and reducing congestion
• Maximising the ‘ripple effect’ of major projects such as HS2

CBI/Irwin Mitchell regional scorecards

The CBI and Irwin Mitchell have developed a series of regional scorecards, which plot how each area performs across the four main drivers of productivity; education, transport, better management practices and exporting. Local and national Governments can use this new tool to help pin-point the strengths and opportunities of each local area and make strides towards turning around performance.