Date: Tue 26th January, 2010
Venue: Think Tank, Shaw Wood Business Park, Shaw Wood Way, Doncaster, DN2 5TB
Number of Guests Attended: 80
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Around 80 people packed into the Think Tank in Lincoln to attend Insider’s Lincolnshire Economic Forum. The audience heard the views of panellists Diana Gilhespy from Emda, Peter Hogarth from UKTI, Sarah Steel from the Old Station Nursery Group, Tony Maione from the Institute of Directors and Andy Harsley from Rapstrap, as they debated the way forward for the Lincolnshire economy.
Commenting on Lincolnshire’s role in the East Midlands, Peter Hogarth said: “We have to take Lincolnshire for what it is and not try and copy other East Midlands regions. You have to ask yourself: do you want to be seen as anywhere else? I believe there are lots of opportunities for smaller businesses.”
Gilhespy agreed and wondered if Lincolnshire actually needed the big guns. She said: “I’d query whether we need larger employers coming in. There are lots of smaller employers in Lincolnshire that can grow and become big employers, but it’s all about trying to provide the right facilities for them to grow. The Think Tank opened in the middle of last year, and it’s great to have this facility. It’s ideally situated for when we come out of recession. But it’s not all about offices; let’s look at somewhere like Marshall’s Yard in Gainsborough which has managed to attract the likes of Next. It shows local businesses that Lincolnshire is serious about its economy.”
Maione was pleased with the support Emda was showing the county. He said: “I think it’s refreshing to hear today that Emda is interested in Lincolnshire. However, I’d suggest that we should learn from our East Midlands neighbours to supplement what we have here already and move onto the next step.”
Harsley added: “Coming from Grantham I feel rather privileged because I’ve got such easy access to the rest of the region and the wider country. The east coast still has access problems, and Boston has a lot of hard work ahead of it, so I think we can see both sides of the picture in the county.”
Gilhespy stressed the importance of promoting the county, saying: You need to value what you’ve got. Like or not, Lincolnshire is the bread basket of the UK, and that’s what we need to make the most of and that’s the message we need to get out to the rest of the UK.”
