16 April 2020

What does the COVID-19 crisis mean for the economies our cities and large towns?

Centre for Cities published a report today on the economic impacts arising from the COVID-19 crisis across the country highlighting the cities and large towns most at risk. Their analysis looks at the jobs predicted to be the most and least affected in the short- to medium-term and which places are expected to bounce back more quickly. This highlighted Crawley in the Coast to Capital area as the most exposed, with over half of its jobs either in vulnerable or very vulnerable sectors.

 

It has the highest share of employees in the aviation and aircraft manufacturing industry of any city. Around 18 per cent of its workforce is employed in the aviation industry and related sectors compared to an average of around 1 per cent across British cities. The result is that over half of all of Crawley's jobs are at risk of being either furloughed or lost completely. We can expect that Crawley will face the most severe challenges to recover. More than half of its exporting jobs at risk.

 

This analysis reinforces the key messages we have been sharing with Government including the potential £8 billion impact on the aviation sector in our area and the impact on the Manor Royal Business Park in Crawley. We will be using the evidence from businesses that we have engaged with, to help Government tailor its own package of interventions to support our region's economy.

 

We will be focusing our efforts on the key sectors of our economy which will be crucial for our future prosperity. Sectors such as aviation, tourism, horticulture, retail, hospitality, entertainment and culture are all massively affected by the crisis and will need significant further support. As a region which depends on all of them, our own needs will be complex and will require Government funding.

 

Looking ahead to recovery

 

We have already begun a strong regional dialogue on what it will take for our economy to adapt and help lead a national recovery from COVID-19. We are working with other LEPs in the South with Government to discuss how we can use our Local Industrial Strategy as a Regional Recovery Plan.

 

I believe that now is the time to deepen regional collaboration to prepare this, by developing a clear strategy for getting our region back to work and developing the right interventions to help this happen. I am keen to engage further on how to do this and this week I wrote an open letter to Local Authority Chief Executives setting out my proposed first steps on this path.

 

Jonathan Sharrock,

Chief Executive at Coast to Capital

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