An emergency taskforce which was formed by Derby’s largest businesses in order to lead the city’s post-pandemic economic recovery has been praised by UK chancellor Rishi Sunak.
Mr Sunak said that the creation of the Derby Economic Task Force in the weeks following the first lockdown last year had a played a vital part in ensuring that the city quickly got to grips with the crisis and could then devise a strategy to help it recover from the devastating effect it had on the economy.
The latest PwC-Demos Good Growth for Cities report found the UK cities hit hardest by the pandemic were those most likely to make the fastest recovery, helped by strategies such as the taskforce’s own bounce-back plan.
Members of the taskforce include major employers such as Rolls-Royce, Derbion, the University of Derby, the Cathedral Quarter and St Peters Quarter business improvement districts, as well as Derby City Council, Marketing Derby and Derby Renaissance Board.
It also worked with the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, East Midlands Chamber and government departments to deliver its aims, which focussed on maintaining short-term confidence, diversifying the city centre and Derby’s employment base and decarbonising the city.
In a video which has been shared online by Derby North MP Amanda Solloway, Mr Sunak said: “Since the coronavirus pandemic began, I have been closely following the recovery efforts in Derby city and I have been hugely impressed by what I have seen.
“At the start of the pandemic Derby set up a recovery taskforce, which includes city’s major employers such as Rolls-Royce and the University of Derby, Toyota, Bombardier and many others, including the city council and Marketing Derby to help alleviate and mitigate the negative economic impact of the coronavirus and provide a clear long-term recovery plan.
“This has allowed Derby to drive forward half a billion pounds’ worth of building, regeneration and transport project supporting investors to create jobs and training opportunities to boost their local economy.”
He also praised the city council’s plan to reopen the city centre with a host of cultural events, as well as praising the current Derby Moorways swimming complex development and a scheme to build a new 3,500 capacity £45 million performance venue in Derby’s Becketwell.
Ms Solloway said: “I’m delighted that the Chancellor Rishi Sunak has recognised that in amongst the huge Whitehall decisions, the unique collaborative approach of Derby’s most high-profile companies and organisations has also played its part in the efforts to get the city, and the country, back on its feet.
“It’s a glowing testament to the way in which, as the scale of the effect the pandemic would have took hold, Derby had the foresight to understand that such a huge challenge required that everybody in the city worked together for the sake of the whole city rather than dealing with the effects sector by sector.
“Rishi and the Government has taken a huge range of historic financial decisions to help businesses across the country both survive and now thrive, but it makes me proud to hear Derby being praised for its own decision to work together in order to lead the city out of what has been an unprecedented and incredibly damaging economic crisis.”
Watch the video here.
