Chamber members told business will play vital part in UK’s productivity revolution
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A former Chancellor of the Exchequer told the region’s businesses that the UK needs a productivity revolution to address ongoing challenges at a Chamber event.
The Rt Hon Lord Hammond of Runnymede said he was optimistic about the country’s future and emphasised that businesses have a major role to play in creating a more efficient and productive society.
Speaking at our 1815 Dinner, Lord Hammond said: “As business leaders you’re at the forefront of the productivity agenda. I wanted you to hear this message, to make sure your businesses are the most productive in the world.
“If we can raise productivity, we can enjoy rising living standards and high quality public services.
“As a country we have lots of advantages. We have a fantastic research and development base. We have excellent universities and research bodies. We are the world’s language preference. All of these things are huge advantages.”
The former Chancellor emphasised the importance of embracing new technology. He said: “We need British businesses to use the latest technology to ensure their employees are able to deliver the highest amount of productivity per head.
“If we don’t embrace technology, we’ll lose jobs because our products won’t be competitive in the global market.
“The UK has an excellent track record of embracing technological change and adapting to it very quickly. We are light years ahead of leaders of sophisticated economies in the way we process payments for example.”
Lord Hammond added that skills and investment are also key to the productivity agenda: “Skills is one of key drivers of productivity. We have a huge creative industry in the UK. The government over the last decade has announced a series of measures which are delivering. We’re moving in the right direction but there’s still much more to do.
“If we want to solve long term challenges and Britain to be a prosperous and successful nation with a growing economy, we also need to invest more.”
On levelling up, he said: “One of the challenges of levelling up is the disparity between different regions in the country. We have an over centralised system in this country, we need more devolution.
“What the North East needs is different to what Manchester needs for example. We’re a country of regions and the political tone of the country is different in different regions.”
Mo Sondhi, senior director at OakNorth, shared information about the business and told attendees that the North East is a key area of growth for the UK banking company.
Deb Walton, Chamber vice president and chief financial officer of Palintest, shared the Chamber’s response to the Chancellor’s Spring Budget and the huge benefits around the trailblazer devolution deal for the North East Mayoral Combined Authority.
Lord Hammond was Chancellor of the Exchequer between July 2016 and July 2019. He was previously Secretary of State for Transport, Secretary of State for Defence and served as Foreign Secretary from 2014 until 2016. Lord Hammond was elected Conservative MP for Runnymede and Weybridge in 1997.
Formally known as the President’s Lunch, the 1815 dinner and lunch events are a nod to the North East Chamber’s founding year. The events bring together 200 senior leaders from 300 of the largest and most influential businesses across the North East, and feature high profile speakers.
The 1815 Dinner took place at Radisson Blu Hotel in Durham on 7 March. The event was sponsored by OakNorth.
Photo caption: (l-r) Jennifer Rycroft, executive director of membership, NECC; Mo Sondhi, senior director, OakNorth; Deb Walton, Chamber vice president and chief financial officer, Palintest; Lord Hammond.