The South West is “the new frontier for investment in the Ƶ” – that was the key message as the region turned up in force to promote itself to investors at the ƵREiiF property showcase.
The Great South West – the pan-regional partnership for Dorset, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall & Isles of Scilly – used the Leeds event to promote the region as a hub for innovation and creativity.
ƵREiiF sees more than 16,000 people flock to Leeds to hear about investment opportunities across the Ƶ, with all nations, regions and cities represented.
The Great South West’s introductory event saw Jo Davis, Ƶ executive chair at Avision Young, chair a panel debate about what the region could offer to investors in areas from space and defence to food and education.
Karl Tucker, chair of Great South West and chair of food brand Yeo Valley, said the region was becoming better known as a destination for business. He joked that he had walked past an event earlier at which Andy Burnham had hyped Manchester as being set for its best decade ever – and said the South West needed to beat that.
Karl said: “We are becoming more important. We are becoming more relevant. We are becoming more recognised and better known.”
He said people didn’t previously know the region as a business destination beyond tourism.
"That needs to change if we are to beat Manchester", he said. “All the ingredients are there. The country needs us more than ever before. We need to drag them out of London, drag them past Bristol, and see the opportunities we have.
And he added: “I think this is the new frontier for investment in the Ƶ. Everybody is focused on the North … but you ignore this region at your peril."
Minerals group Imerys this month announced an £18m investment in its china clay mining operations in Cornwall.
Mark Hewson, Ƶ hub director at Imerys, joined the ƵREiiF panel. Pointing at the giant map of the Great South West region on the wall behind him, he said: “That map is 300 million years old. It’s a large rock that starts by Bristol and runs to the Isles of Scilly. And it’s full of minerals.”
It is, he said, probably the largest block in Europe for some of those increasingly critical minerals – a fact which will be critical to the region’s development.
Late the panel was asked about the global turbulence of the last 12 months, including the Trump tariffs. Mark said that for projects with a 50-year lifespan “headwinds don’t matter”.
Cllr Millie Earl, leader at Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, said the South West had room for development and had great clusters of excellence in business and education. And she said the region’s leaders had a true passion for the area, saying “the future is so important to us that it transcends the politics”.
Defence giant Leonardo has operations throughout the South West, including the Home of British Helicopters in Yeovil. Philip Pratley, director of international affairs at Leonardo, said: “The USP of the South West is the adaptability that we show”. And he praised the region’s strong skills base and its forward-looking attitude, saying the area "defines itself by what needs are important in the next decade, not what the needs are in this decade.”
