Ben OsborneThe Cities Outlook 2012 report released by the Centre for Cities yesterday shows that York is an island of relative economic wellbeing, in what is fast becoming a turbulent sea of unemployment in the North. The Centre for Cities is an independent, non-partisan research and policy institute who look to improve the economic performance of UK cities.
York has held its own with the South in terms of economic growth and employment, matching Southern cities on key economic indicators including welfare claimants, inequality and workforce qualifications. York also came out of the study in the top ten of UK cities with the lowest level of inequality between residents.
Although the report was good news for York, the future isn’t so rosy for much of the rest of Yorkshire, with Hull and Doncaster among the five English towns and cities which will find it most difficult to launch an economic revival this year.
Councillor James Alexander, Labour Leader of City of York Council, said: “We welcome the report which shows that York remains one of the best cities in the country to live and work. It proves that the city is well placed to recover from the global recession, and to ensure that all sections of the community can benefit from new economic opportunities.
“The report shows York to have high growth and low comparable rates of unemployment compared to elsewhere – vindication of all efforts made by the council and its partners to support the local economy and help residents into work.
“However, there can be no grounds for complacency. Our priority remains to move the economy forward and build upon our ambitions and strengths through the recently launched York Economic Strategy.
“We know that we need to further improve skills to ensure that York’s workforce can meet the changing needs of local businesses, strengthen the city’s culture of enterprise, develop knowledge and creative businesses and ensure that there is space for growth. Our aim is to ensure that York is not just seen as one of the best cities in the UK to live and work, but as one of the best cities in the world.”
The report strongly pushes for increased private sector growth to stimulate the economy, stating that “the priority for 2012 is to get the UK back on the path to private sector growth and job creation. Cities will have a vital role to play.”
Stephen Leonard, Chief Executive, IBM UK and Ireland spoke of the importance of visionaries in cities taking leadership to promote growth, ”Leaders will need to act decisively and on a broad range of topics if their cities are to transition successfully into ‘Smarter Cities’. The greatest advances are created by visionaries who are able to see and plan beyond organisational boundaries; much of the technology already exists to help them achieve this.
“Understanding where you are today, with respect to your peers and competitors, is an essential first step towards setting and achieving goals – this report helps provide these valuable insights.”
