No towns or cities can be left behind - Beckie Hart

Businesses in Yorkshire and the Humber all want to reach that same destination – yet the journey will be different for all of them.

Some will face additional obstacles in the form of pockets of limited skills and poor infrastructure, leading to lower productivity stalling their revival. In some cases, geography alone will determine whether businesses survive or flounder – and that unfairness must end.

The Prime Minister recognises this. Boris Johnson has vowed to “unleash the potential of our whole country” by investing in the infrastructure, jobs and skills long-needed to end regional inequality. His promise will have reassured those in England’s most disenfranchised corners that brighter days lie ahead.

Yet much has changed since the Government first revealed those levelling-up ambitions.

A worldwide pandemic, an unprecedented economic crisis, and the looming spectre of a potential no-deal Brexit have made this a year like no other. It is therefore entirely proper that spending plans are subjected to fresh scrutiny after public purses have taken such a battering.

But if compromises are to be made, they should not come from within the levelling-up agenda. For the country to rebound quickly from the economic ravages of coronavirus, it is vital that the Prime Minister’s commitment to levelling-up is renewed, and his investment promises fulfilled.

Revitalising the economy will be tough. There will be no quick fixes. If the country is to enjoy the rapid revival we all hope for, we need to create the conditions which allow all businesses to contribute.

No towns or cities can be left behind. A recovery driven by only limited pockets of prosperity cannot be considered a sound foundation for a fair and sustainable future economy.

But what does levelling-up look like here in Yorkshire and the Humber, and how can we make it work?

It looks like more jobs. Better jobs, greener jobs, in low-carbon and tech-rich industries. It looks like improved access to training, an open door to lifelong education which equips workers with the skills they need – and which employers are crying out for.

It looks like improved connectivity, that gives communities active, integrated, flexible and sustainable travel. Faster trains, to new destinations, with greater capacity for passengers and freight.

It looks like a business ecosystem which encourages entrepreneurial endeavour and rewards innovation. A supportive culture, that recognises the unprecedented challenges businesses currently face, but which gives companies the freedom and the confidence they need to invest and grow.

Crucially, it looks like local authorities being empowered to make all of this happen.

Beckie Hart is regional director for Yorkshire and the Humber at the CBI

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James Mitchinson