Spotlight on Sheffield as city hosts major Northern Powerhouse summit

Hundreds of people will shape the future of the North at a major event in Sheffield.
Rt Hon Jake Berry, Minister for Northern Powerhouse  at The Great Northern Conference 2019. Picture Tony Johnson.Rt Hon Jake Berry, Minister for Northern Powerhouse  at The Great Northern Conference 2019. Picture Tony Johnson.
Rt Hon Jake Berry, Minister for Northern Powerhouse at The Great Northern Conference 2019. Picture Tony Johnson.

The Great Northern Conference will hammer out how best to grow its £329 billion economy and build a greener, fairer and more equal society post-Brexit.

It will also celebrate Sheffield’s profile as a key player in the Northern Powerhouse and comes after the success of the inaugural event which drew 350 people - in business, politics, local government, charity, media and the public sector - to Leeds last year.

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The GNC 2020 is on Thursday March 19th at the opulent Cutlers’ Hall, home of Sheffield’s historic manufacturing organisation, the Company of Cutlers.

Lord Jim O'Neil at The Great Northern Conference 2019. Picture Tony Johnson.Lord Jim O'Neil at The Great Northern Conference 2019. Picture Tony Johnson.
Lord Jim O'Neil at The Great Northern Conference 2019. Picture Tony Johnson.

It is organised by JPIMedia - parent company of The Star and the Yorkshire Post - and the Northern Powerhouse Partnership.

For more information and to register for delegate tickets visit www.greatnorthernconference.co.uk

Nancy Fielder, editor of The Star in Sheffield, said the city was looking forward to demonstrating its dynamism and potential to a wider audience.

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She added: “The Great Northern Conference will be a big moment for the Northern Powerhouse project in 2020. Only by uniting can the region overcome the challenges it faces and fulfill its potential.

The GNC is set to bring hundreds of people to the Cutlers' Hall in Sheffield.The GNC is set to bring hundreds of people to the Cutlers' Hall in Sheffield.
The GNC is set to bring hundreds of people to the Cutlers' Hall in Sheffield.

“The idea has really taken hold over the last six years and the GNC will be where people are primed for further action.

“This event also gives Sheffield the chance to raise its profile in the North and show that it means business.”

Topics for discussion include the state of the North, education, manufacturing, digital connectivity, health, energy, skills, trading and investment and metro mayors.

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The future of HS2 will also come under the spotlight in a keynote debate on transport. A recent review of the high-speed rail project raised concerns over costs and reignited the debate about its future, alarming many in the North who view it as vital to the region’s prosperity.

The Great Hall at the Cutlers' Hall in Sheffield. Picture: Marie CaleyThe Great Hall at the Cutlers' Hall in Sheffield. Picture: Marie Caley
The Great Hall at the Cutlers' Hall in Sheffield. Picture: Marie Caley

Key speakers include Minister for the Northern Powerhouse and Local Growth, Jake Berry, and Roger Hough, Chairman of Peel Airports Group, which includes Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

Mr Berry is the standard bearer for the North’s ambitions in Parliament after the post was given a seat in Boris Johnson’s Cabinet.

He will be instrumental in the Prime Minister’s stated desire to ‘level up’ the country, close the North-South divide - and repay the former Labour constituencies that switched allegiance in December’s general election, helping him win power.

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The Northern Powerhouse includes five of the UK’s ten largest cities: Sheffield, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle and is home to 15.3m people and 1.1m businesses, up 22 per cent since 2010.

The Great Northern Conference 2020.The Great Northern Conference 2020.
The Great Northern Conference 2020.

Last year, the event heard from leading economist Lord Jim O'Neill, who together with the then Chancellor George Osborne, came up with the groundbreaking idea.

The GNC in 2020 is sponsored by The Northern Powerhouse Partnership, Sellafield Ltd, Talk Talk, Arcadis, Doncaster Sheffield Airport, the Northern Health Science Alliance and Northern Gas and Power.

For more information and to register for delegate tickets visit www.greatnorthernconference.co.uk