Call for structural change to economy

BACK in July, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt visited the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre's state-of-the-art Factory 2050 site as he announced that South Yorkshire would be England's first investment zone.

- ROB PARSONS

With £80m in government funding to invest in skills and tax incentives, the aim was to help aerospace giant Boeing and others reimagine the future of aviation and, in the process, create 8,000 high-skilled jobs by the end of the decade. Since then, other investment zones have been unveiled in Greater Manchester, the Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire and now the North East.

This week, at a summit at the same Factory 2050 research and development facility organised by the University of Sheffield and partners, local leaders pondered what else was needed to help innovation grow South Yorkshire's economy.