THE TEES VIEW
The appliance of science- Fujifilm Diosynth Technologies lead in biosciences
not talking about deluding ourselves, but I am talking about recognising just how far we ' ve come.
There’ s more and more evidence to suggest we’ re no longer the outsiders looking in – we ' re rapidly becoming genuine contenders.
And if you haven ' t looked at our region for a few years, here ' s what you ' ll find today.
One of the UK ' s fastest-growing digital sectors is based here. Companies like Double Eleven are helping create some of the biggest and most advanced games in the world.
At the same time, global investors are creating projects in industries of the future like CCUS( carbon capture, utilisation and storage) and offshore wind at Teesworks, while we’ re seeing progress in sustainable aviation fuel and lithium refineries in places like Wilton and Billingham.
On top of that, Fujifilm and other investors in biosciences continue to demonstrate the strength of our advanced manufacturing and research and development sectors across the
region.
The most encouraging thing is that this growing confidence isn ' t limited to businesses and investors but is increasingly shared by local leaders too.
Ten years ago, when we first started looking at the ways we could unlock the potential of our area, conversations about investment and jobs often descended into party political squabbling. There’ s no doubt that the scale of what we hoped to achieve was difficult for some to believe.
Today, more and more conversations between local leaders, whatever their political colour, begin with the same question: How do we make it happen?
You can see that approach in Stockton, where we backed the transformation of Stockton Waterfront to reshape the town centre and reconnect it with the river.
You can see it in Darlington, where we worked together to deliver a £ 120m station redevelopment that many people talked about for years but never quite believed would happen.
You can see it in the success of the Darlington Economic Campus and Treasury North. Not long ago, the idea of key national economic decisions being made from our region would have seemed ridiculous. Thanks to the previous Conservative government- and continued under the current administration- it is now a reality.
Confidence attracts confidence. When investors look at our region
today, they don ' t see a place waiting for Westminster to determine its future.
They see a globally significant industrial zone, world-class manufacturers, innovative digital businesses and local leaders determined to make the region even better. They see a local population with decades of skills in heavy industry and chemicals and processing who stand ready to embrace new opportunities and turn worldleading projects into reality.
If your impression of Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool was formed a decade ago, I ' d encourage you to come and take another look.
You ' ll find a region that ' s no longer defined by what it has lost, but by what it is building.
And I think you ' ll discover we ' re no longer the underdog many people still imagine us to be.
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