A seminar was jointly organised by the Institute for Local Governance and JLGC at the Teikyo University of Japan in Durham campus on Friday 10 July.
In 2013, construction of a major new manufacturing plant began in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, giving an immediate initial boost to the local labour market. The new train manufacturing plant will be handed over to Hitachi in September, and in the months that follow 700 new jobs will come to the area.
Hitachi’s arrival represents just one amongst many welcome journeys that Japanese companies have made to North East England, including Nissan, Nifco, Komatsu and NSK Bearings, amongst many others. These companies, alongside the supply chains they have built with UK companies, play a major role in providing an economic boost to the region.
Undoubtedly, the North East wants Japanese companies to stay there and would welcome more, but what, precisely, is the offer to encourage this to happen? Has the North East fully gone the extra mile to welcome such investment? But perhaps most importantly of all, what is being learnt from the companies that come to the region and how well is the region responding to the massive economic contribution they make in business terms?
This seminar looked at the contribution Japanese business has made to the enterprise culture in North East England. But the debate was not just a historical one. What was also discussed was what can be done to build stronger links with existing and new companies. The conference also aimed to think about ways to increase levels of enterprising activity in the region in the localities where major new Japanese firms are operating and identify reasons why such opportunities might be grasped, missed or stifled.
This conference provided an opportunity to tackle such questions in a constructive way from many different standpoints in order to inform policy makers and industrialists in the region about the contribution of Japanese inward investment to the local economy.
To lead the debate, a number of speakers presented their ideas and talked about their experiences:
- Phil Wilson MP, Member of Parliament for Sedgefield
- David Coppock, UKTI North East
- Simon Goon, Business Durham
- Kazuya Shima and Andrew Stevens, Japan Local Government Centre (CLAIR London)
- Professor Tony Chapman, St Chad’s College, Durham University
The seminar also provided an opportunity to network with industrialists in key Japanese firms in the region, including the new Hitachi plant in Newton Aycliffe.
The Institute for Local Governance is a North East Research and Knowledge Exchange Partnership established in 2009 comprising the region’s Universities, Local Authorities, Police and Fire and Rescue Services.
The JLGC presentation was on the role of Japanese local government in supporting local business, a PDF version of which can be seen here: The role of Japan’s Local Authorities in supporting local businesses (English link)
