Amy: 0:00

Thank you. Hello and welcome again to The Bench Report. You're listening to Amy and Ivan. Today, we're exploring a recent parliamentary discussion. It gives quite a revealing look at the challenges, but also the potential future of the UK's post-industrial towns.

Ivan: 0:18

And what's interesting here is how the conversation moved beyond just listing problems. It really started digging into specific practical strategies aimed at re-energizing local economies and creating new opportunities for you wherever you happen to live.

Amy: 0:33

So let's unpack that a bit. The picture painted by MPs was, well, pretty stark, really. Many post-industrial towns described as dying on their feet, which is quite a strong phrase.

Ivan: 0:44

It is. And it's not just about the economy, is it? It's demographic, too. You see younger people feeling they have to move away, often to cities, looking for better jobs, maybe higher pay.

Amy: 0:52

Which leaves behind populations that are often older, perhaps with lower skill levels on average, and crucially, with increasing health demands. It does raise big questions about, you know, the whole country's balance.

Ivan: 1:04

And there's a history here. For generations, the feeling expressed was that these areas were often overlooked by governments, sometimes seen as too difficult to do when it came to big investment plans.

Amy: 1:16

Right.

Ivan: 1:17

The discussion highlighted how a traditional Treasury way of assessing projects, the Green Book, historically tended to favor the big cities.

Amy: 1:25

That Green Book point is interesting. Why has that specific method drawn so much attention now in terms of regional funding?

Ivan: 1:32

Well, the Green Book basically lays out how Which naturally

Amy: 1:42

channels money towards areas that are already performing strongly, like London, perhaps.

Ivan: 1:48

Precisely. And that approach could make vital projects in towns needing regeneration seem less cost-effective on paper. It inadvertently seems to have deepened regional inequality over many years.

Amy: 1:59

But alongside that history, these towns face very real immediate pressures, too, don't they? High industrial energy prices were mentioned as seriously hitting manufacturing. Take the ceramics industry in Stoke-on-Trent. Twenty five percent of local manufacturing jobs are apparently in ceramics. That's a huge vulnerability.

Ivan: 2:18

Absolutely. And linking this back to the broader strategy. The idea proposed is a national industrial strategy, one that aims to unlock the potential that is there in these areas to transform them into wealth builders.

Amy: 2:32

Wealth builders. So not just managing decline, but actively fostering growth.

Ivan: 2:36

Exactly. It's about creating local ecosystems where new businesses can start and grow. Wages might rise. And crucially, the wealth generated stays and circulates within that community, which then supports local shops, services, maybe improves local pride, too.

Amy: 2:50

And they did give some pretty compelling That's a huge sum, fusion

Ivan: 2:59

energy development.

Amy: 3:02

It sounds incredibly ambitious, aiming to position the region right at the forefront of future clean energy.

Ivan: 3:07

It does. And other commitments were mentioned, too. $30 million committed to reopening Doncaster Airport. $800 million for a new train factory straddling Newton A-Cliff and Spennymoor.

Amy: 3:20

And there was a push for using British steel in British railways.

Ivan: 3:23

Yes, with calls to replicate that principle, using domestic materials in other big infrastructure projects like new nuclear builds or road schemes. And underpinning a lot of this is investment in things like superfast broadband, especially mentioned for more remote areas like Axminster. Connectivity is key.

Amy: 3:41

Of course, all these big projects, they need skilled people. Which brings us to what was called a skills revolution. The focus seems to be on strong, further education colleges and apprenticeships really closely aligned with what local industries actually need.

Ivan: 3:55

Things like aviation, logistics, green technologies. The idea is to create pathways for young people into good local jobs.

Amy: 4:02

So they don't feel they have to leave. And maybe reducing the need to bring in skills from elsewhere.

Ivan: 4:06

And the vision presented was for this to benefit all of Great Britain. There were a Pacific mentions of potential in Scotland, down in Cornwall thinking about renewables and critical minerals there, and also Northern Ireland, supporting not just big industries but also the small and medium-sized businesses that are often the backbone of local economies.

Amy: 4:26

So boiling it down, the core ambition seems to be building wealth in these local areas directly, which then feeds into better housing, more local spending, new independent shops and businesses springing up, empowering communities from within. Considering this shift toward place-based investment Take care.