The West of England’s Mayor welcomed ministers and fellow mayors for the first time to the West Innovation Arc Growth Zone – the fastest growing part of the West, which is itself the country’s fastest growing regional economy. The Mayoral Council was today hosted in South Gloucestershire at NCC, the University of Bristol’s world-leading research and development centre.
A dozen regional mayors and deputy mayors met here in the West Country with five ministers, including two cabinet ministers.
Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England; Katie Riddington, Chief Portfolio Officer at NCC; Professor Judith Squires, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost of the University of Bristol; and Professor Simon McIntosh-Smith, Director of the Bristol Centre for Supercomputing (BriCS), together gave Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Government, a tour of NCC and Isambard-AI.
The group showed off some of what the region already does well and highlighted the West’s growth potential, with further devolution set to give more powers and new funding to the region.
NCC helps create almost 800 new jobs each year. The wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Bristol supports small and medium sized businesses, including in partnership with the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority. The site gives almost 400 engineers access to some £300 million of state-of-the-art equipment.
During the tour, the Cabinet Minister and Mayor saw Isambard-AI, the country’s fastest supercomputer. The £225 million government-funded national facility, built and run by the University’s Bristol Centre for Supercomputing (BriCS) in close partnership with HPE and NVIDIA, is able to process in one second what it would take the entire global population 80 years to achieve.
NCC is part of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult Network, which nationally has invested some £1.6 billion of public funding to create around £7.7 billion for the British economy. NCC’s Chief Business Officer, Jo Dally, who co-chairs the West’s new Business Boardalso met with mayors and ministers during their visit.
Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said: “It was brilliant to host more than a dozen mayors and ministers in the West of England for the first time. Bringing the Mayoral Council to our region is the latest sign of the strong relationships that we are building with government and with other parts of the country.
“Our region’s voice is finally starting to be heard in this new chapter for the West of England, which will help secure more funding and powers so that more decisions are made here rather than in Westminster. The case for extra investment is strong, and the world-class innovation of NCC and Isambard-AI are jewels in the crown of the country’s fastest growing regional economy.
“In a really exciting week for our region, we have taken further strides forward in our sprint to catch up with other areas and make the most of devolution as we work together to get the best for the West.”
Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, said: “It was fantastic to bring the Mayoral Council to the West Country for the first time, and hear about the work being undertaken by our mayors to grow the economy, create jobs, and make the important decisions that matter to local people.
“This region is leading the way in creating new jobs and supporting technologies of the future, like the impressive AI supercomputer we saw at the University of Bristol, and we are empowering our mayoral regions to invest in ways that will deliver growth and create jobs for their communities.
“Our mayors will always have a voice and a seat at the table, and this meeting was a clear reminder of what we can achieve when we empower local people and back them to achieve their goals.”
NCC CEO Richard Oldfield said: “On behalf of NCC and the High Value Manufacturing Catapult we were delighted to host the Secretary of State Steve Reed OBE MP and the Mayoral Council at our West of England headquarters.
“We are proud of the considerable contribution we make to the national and regional economy through our innovation support to globally leading businesses in aerospace, energy and security; and to hundreds of SMEs annually across programmes like Made Smarter. Innovation in the West of England is helping drive growth nationally and it was a pleasure to showcase our role in this to Regional Mayors.”
Professor Judith Squires, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost of the University of Bristol, said: “Hosting this important discussion with regional mayors and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government at NCC underscores the strength and ambition of our region.
“It was a pleasure to showcase Isambard-AI, the world’s fastest university supercomputer, which is contributing directly to the UK’s growing focus on artificial intelligence, and is an example of how our innovation ecosystem is aligned with national priorities.
“The West of England continues to demonstrate exceptional leadership, collaboration and delivery – showing that when our region comes together, we can support the government’s ambition to help the country achieve more and shape a future which benefits everyone.”
The West of England is the country’s fastest growing regional economy and is already the most productive area outside of the capital. Since 2019, the West’s economy has grown four times faster than the national average and is now worth more than £54 billion.
In the last decade, the region created more than 100,000 new jobs and seen the highest job growth in its key growth sectors of any region, including London: creative industries, digital and tech, clean energy, and the everyday economy.
This week, the government announced plans to invest £2.5 billion in AI along with record funding for quantum technology. The regional Growth Strategy sets out an ambition to establish the country’s first AI Supercluster as part of plans to create 72,000 new jobs over the coming decade, with the West well-placed as the first region in the UK to sign a tech trade agreement with Elevate Quantum in the United States.
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Mayor Helen Godwin welcomed the Mayoral Council to NCC, including Bristol-born Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands; Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire and Chair of UK Mayors; Paul Bristow, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough; Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester; Oliver Coppard, Mayor of South Yorkshire; Howard Dawber, Deputy Mayor of London; Ben Houchen, Mayor of Tees Valley; Kim McGuiness, Mayor of the North East; Ingrid Sheard, Deputy Mayor of Lincolnshire; David Skaith, Mayor of York and North Yorkshire; and Claire Ward, Mayor of the East Midlands.
As well as the Housing Secretary, the mayors were joined by the Devolution Minister, Miatta Fahnbulleh; Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, Darren Jones; Policing Minister, Sarah Jones; Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Daniel Tomlinson; and the Head of the Independent Review of Police Force Structures, Lord Bernard Hogan-Howe.
