27.07.04
'Very positive' meeting as 11 Downing Street hears Cornwall's regeneration plans
Chancellor Gordon Brown's closest advisers
were presented yesterday afternoon with a blueprint for the continued
regeneration of Cornwall and Scilly by members of a high level delegation
to the Treasury. On the agenda were improvements to the A30 and the future
of Newquay Airport.
Falmouth and Camborne MP Candy Atherton had created the
opportunity for Cornwall to lay out its plans for further revitalisation
of the local economy.
Delegates were invited to meet Economic Secretary to the
Treasury John Healey, one of Gordon Brown's key Ministers.
The delegation, pictured above (left to right) consisted of:John
Berry - Managing Director of Cornwall Enterprise; Candy Atherton - Falmouth
and Camborne MP; Carleen Kelemen - Director of the Objective One Partnership
for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly; Tim Williams - Chief Executive of
the Camborne Pool and Redruth Regeneration Company; Nigel Costley - South
West Regional Development Agcney; Colin Molton - Director of Development,
South West Regional Development Agency; John Lobb - Leader, Cornwall County
Council and Peter Stethridge - Chief Executive, Cornwall County Council.
Objective One Partnership Programme Director Carleen Kelemen
gave a presentation detailing the good work already started under Cornwall
and Scilly's current Objective One programme.
Delegates agreed that the meeting had been 'very positive,
with excellent dialogue'. Minister John Healey had 'recognised the challenges
faces by Cornwall, the success of the existing Objective One programme,
and the approach to partnership working.'
The Minister was very interested in how a further round of structural
funding could be taken forward, and asked the partner organisations to
work up the case for how future funding streams could be more 'joined
up'.
The delegation stressed two current concerns – the
long awaited dualling of the A30 across Goss Moor, and the uncertainty
over plans for the future of Newquay Airport following last week's defence
review.
Mr Healey promised to write to Candy Atherton and John
Lobb on the future of St Mawgan air base, which is inextricably linked
to the civil airport's own growth plans.
In presentation focused on six points for the future regeneration
of Cornwall and Scilly:
| 1. |
The first is the need not just for more jobs, but for
better-paid jobs, encouraging Cornwall's numerous small businesses
to grow, to add value to raw materials, and therefore to be able to
offer higher wages. Incubating higher quality, knowledge-based businesses
is a key target, and is one of the expected outputs of the Combined
Universities in Cornwall project, and 'enterprise friendly' local
development. |
| 2. |
Secondly, Cornwall needs to continue to modernise its transport
and communications infrastructure - removing trunk road bottlenecks
like Goss Moor and Dobwalls, continuing the roll-out of Broadband
internet connections, and keeping Newquay Airport on target, were
all mentioned in this context. |
| 3. |
Cornwall's key towns are considered economic drivers, and the refurbishment
of St. Austell town centre, Camborne/Pool/Redruth regeneration, the
spacial strategy for Newquay, and Bodmin's status as an industrial
and commercial hub, were all mentioned as vital. There was also recognition
of the opportunities for smaller towns. |
| 4. |
Tackling social exclusion was another vital element of the plan,
building on the success of JobCentre Plus initiatives and high quality
vocational training. |
| 5. |
Repositioning Cornwall's traditional industries and its environment
was another point under discussion. The Haskins review of the delivery
of environmental, farming and rural services would be one of the drivers
for Cornwall playing a greater role in determining its own future. |
| 6. |
The final point was developing what is known as the 'Cornwall Brand'.
Services and products in Cornwall needed to be a sign of quality,
particularly in terms of foodstuffs and agricultural produce. Rolling
those attributes out to other aspects of the Cornish economy, particularly
backing quality tourism initiatives like the Tate St. Ives extension,
is part of the route map to prosperity described at the Treasury yesterday. |
Delegates described how Cornwall and Scilly had made the
best of their initial Objective One programme, and how a further round
of support from both the Government and the EU was the best recipe for
creating sustainable economic growth.
One of the successful features of the way the programme
is being delivered is through strong partnership working, across the many
agencies charged with delivering a brighter future for Cornwall.
Editor's notes:
Sue Wolstenholme
Objective One Communications
Objective One Partnership Office
Castle House
Pydar Street
Truro TR1 2UD
Mobile: 07973 813647
Telephone: 01579 370991
lmroberts@cornwall.gov.uk
 back to top
|
