Wales: Economy

Lord Thomas of Gresford Excerpts

Wednesday 7th November 2012 Lords Chamber

[Lord Thomas of Gresford]

My Lords, I am delighted to follow the noble Lord, Lord Jones. Perhaps your Lordships will forgive me if, in the course of my remarks, I put in a plug for north-east Wales as well.

First, I congratulate my noble friend Lady Randerson on her new position. I am delighted that she is working with a Secretary of State for Wales from Rhosllanerchrugog, which perhaps may pull the whole balance of Wales a little further to the north. Rhosllanerchrugog is very dear to my heart. I recall fighting the 1974 election and hearing that there was a young Liberal branch in Rhosllanerchrugog. So I set out to find it; it was within the constituency I was fighting. And there it was; it had been formed in 1905 and had not been added to since. However, the ladies concerned were delighted to sit in the rooms that we acquired in the village and dispense tea to all their friends. Rhosllanerchrugog was the home of politicians, musicians and educationalists. It was once said that every primary school headmaster in Denbighshire came from Rhosllanerchrugog. It was worse than the masons. However, that was the nature of the village. It was in an industrial setting. There were 11 collieries in the area when I was a boy. There was a steelworks at Brymbo which produced far better quality steel than the huge sprawl of Shotton steelworks down in Deeside, to which the noble Lord referred. It was a centre of industry and of culture and I hope that it will become so again.

I would like to draw attention to the final report of the city regions task and finish group that was set up by the Welsh Assembly Government under Dr Elizabeth Haywood and which reported last July. The group felt that a city region approach in Wales could deliver larger and more efficient labour markets, larger potential markets for goods and services because of the concentration of activity and transport costs savings, and a greater exchange of knowledge, ideas and innovation. Recommendations were therefore made in that report for the establishment of two city regions in south Wales. The main factors considered were critical mass; traffic flows; community identification; and existing structures of governance. It was recognised in the report that Welsh cities contribute less to the economy than cities elsewhere in the United Kingdom. I am disappointed that the group was unable to recommend a city region encompassing Chester, Wrexham and Deeside. I concede that community identification would be an issue if one put Wrexham and Chester together. However, they are only 12 miles apart.

Economic flows often overlap existing local authorities and create a sub-region or city region. Such a region should reflect economic reality and not political or administrative boundaries, including the boundary between England and Wales. The two communities of Wrexham and Deeside alone, despite the advocacy for Deeside from the noble Lord, Lord Jones, and for Wrexham from me, would not have the critical mass. But the sub-region which was rejected, including Chester, is very closely linked. It would give rise to a population of nearly 500,000. One has to wonder whether the existence of the Wales/England border was a factor in the group’s conclusion. After all—perish the thought—such a region would require input not just from Cardiff and the Assembly Government, but from Westminster itself.

In north-east Wales there are strong cross-border commuting inflows to Airbus, to which the noble Lord, Lord Jones, referred, and to the Flintshire and Wrexham industrial estates. There are outflows to major employers on the English side—Vauxhall at Ellesmere Port and to all the small businesses which depend upon it. Wrexham is a major retail centre. It also has large companies in its industrial estate and many SME businesses, which have thrived. When the collieries and the steelworks closed, the leatherworks departed and the brewery shut down, one felt that there would be nothing left. However, the investment into the area has been very constructive and positive. Deeside, with its enterprise zone, to which the noble Lord, Lord Jones, referred, is a very significant centre for manufacturing. Chester is important for services, tourism and retail. There are two excellent universities at Glyndwr and Chester. The former, Glyndwr, focuses on servicing the industries in the area: for example, precision optical glass at St Asaph. I am pleased to hear that the college at which I lectured on Deeside will be combined and form a greater group in that area as well.

Transport links are good. I agree that the electrification of the railways serving the Wrexham area—the Birkenhead to Wrexham line—should be carried out as soon as possible to connect with the electrified railway system in Liverpool. It is a recognised priority. If there is a need for building up investment in large projects, that is one that would bring a great deal of benefit to the area. The automotive industry creates 9,000 jobs at Vauxhall at Ellesmere Port and at Toyota on Deeside. It is another area of expertise which the two universities of Chester and Glyndwr do and should address.

We also have the problem with the border. The group recommended that the Welsh Government—and, I suggest, my noble friend—should look at the cross-border relationships that have developed and work between Danish Copenhagen on one side and the Swedish city of Malmo on the other. The two countries combine to produce an economic entity that is very effective. Aachen, Maastricht and Liège also co-operate in economic development. Three countries are involved there: Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. We have a similarly great opportunity to bring regions together. The chief executive of Cheshire West told the group that a “sharper focus on the art of the possible” was needed because of the border between England and Wales. That put it very well. We should not regard the border as something that prevents constructive economic development of the region. In north-east Wales and in Chester we face competition from the city regions that are being developed both in Manchester and Liverpool. Something needs to be done—and done soon—involving both the United Kingdom and Welsh Assembly Governments.