Call for aviation strategy for Northern Powerhouse as region outperforms London

Business and civic leaders in the north of England, including the owners of Manchester Airport, are calling for an aviation strategy for the north to boost the economy.

In an event at Manchester Airport today, they will say that the government must establish northern airports as ‘the beating heart’ of the Northern Powerhouse economy.

Quoting figures from the new NatWest Northern Powerhouse Purchase Managers Index, they will point out that the region has outperformed London in 29 of the past 36 months, but further investment in infrastructure is needed.

Manchester Airport CEO Andrew Cowan, Lord Jim O’Neill, Vice-Chair of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, Chair of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Leader of Bradford Council and Joanne Roney, CEO of Manchester City Council, will call for a ‘super-connected, productive and internationally competitive Northern Powerhouse’.

They will say that direct access to the world’s most important economies is ‘critical to the creation of internationally-significant centres of excellence in fields like advanced manufacturing, technology, energy and life sciences in the North’.

Ahead of the close of the consultation on the government’s aviation strategy green paper, the event takes place at Manchester Airport’s new pier, which opened on April 1 and is the first phase of its wider £1 billion investment, which will see Terminal Two grow by more than 150% to become the airport’s primary terminal.

Manchester Airport says its spare runway capacity demonstrates that it and other gateways in the north have the capability to play a leading role in rebalancing the economy and taking pressure away from London and the South East.

The leaders say more direct flights to high-growth economies, rather than connecting flights via domestic or overseas hubs, will do the most to increase trade, investment and educational links to and from the north.

They claim that the recent launch of new services to countries such as China has shown they can bring hundreds of millions of pounds a year of economic benefit.

Lord O’Neill will say: "Access to the world’s most important markets is key to the north realising its true potential. Across the Northern Powerhouse, we are seeing significant private sector investment in airports, demonstrated nowhere better than here at Manchester Airport.

"That ambition should be matched by government support for maximising the potential of Northern airports through the Aviation Strategy process.

"We need major investment that will allow the north’s economic corridors to be better connected, attracting investment, creating jobs as well as attracting overseas organisations to discover a connected Northern Powerhouse through Manchester Airport, which with direct flights already to destinations like China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Ethiopia, is key.

"Due to transport barriers, it can take an hour and a half to get from Leeds to Newcastle for instance, which would be cut significantly under Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR).

"The Purchase Managers Index shows that the ‘ManSheffLeedsPool’ corridor is thriving, but we need to do more to better connect the north east in particular which is not yet sharing in the benefits of agglomeration with the rest of the Northern Powerhouse."

Key to maximising the potential of Manchester Airport, and in turn ensuring the benefits of international connectivity reach all parts of the North, is dramatically improved surface access, through transformative schemes like Northern Powerhouse Rail, say leaders.

NPR will radically reduce journey times between the UK’s third largest gateway and the north’s major cities, nearly trebling its public transport catchment area and helping attract up to 20 new long haul routes in the process.

Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe will say: "Linking up the North’s airports, together with our rail and road connectivity, is the missing piece of the Northern Powerhouse jigsaw. That is why Lord O’Neill and fellow parliamentarians wrote to the Chancellor last week, seeking meaningful commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail with a city centre station in Bradford to link to Manchester Airport, Hull and Sheffield as part of the £120 billion package of infrastructure investments in strategic and local transport schemes needed to deliver a once-in-200-year opportunity to rebalance the economy and narrow the North-South divide."

Cowan will tell the meeting: "Manchester Airport is a national asset, providing the north with direct connectivity to more than 210 destinations around the world.

"This list includes nine of the UK’s 10 biggest export markets, our largest source markets for inward investment and international centres of excellence in the sectors the North has particular strength in.

"We are clear that Manchester Airport has the potential to play an even greater role in driving growth across the North and rebalancing the UK in the process. That is why we are investing more than £1 billion in transforming our facilities and laying the foundations for us to connect the north to even more international destinations.

"It is pleasing to see Manchester Airport’s national significance recognised in the Aviation 2050 Green Paper and we look forward to working with government, and our partners across the north, to identify and deliver the measures that will unlock our full potential for the benefit of the region, and the UK as a whole.

"That includes through schemes like HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail, which will combine with our own investment to make the North one of the world’s most connected regions."