North East England Chamber of Commerce Paul Carbert Policy Adviser

Scores largely unchanged from Q1 Most indicators down from last year The Headlines Scores largely unchanged from Q1 Most indicators down from last year Concerns over cashflow and investment Brexit and staff shortages worrying firms

Cashflow Manufacturing -8.7% Services +2.1% Overall +0.9%

Skills supply – demographics 63% of population is working age compared to 62% across England excluding London Larger proportion of population aged 50-64 and 65+ Lower proportion aged 0-15 and 25-49 Population projected to grow by 2.1% between 2017 and 2027 By 2027, there will be 32,000 fewer individuals of working age than in 2017 in North East LEP area

Skills provision – job-related training In 2017, 45% of North East LEP area businesses had a training plan in place and 35% had a budget for training (similar rates to England excluding London – 46% and 35%) 63% had funded or arranged training for their employees in the last 12 months (a slightly smaller proportion than England excluding London, 66%)

Future Skills Policy Apprenticeship reform – consultation? Comprehensive Spending Review T Levels National Retraining Scheme Migration policy post-Brexit Devolution Augar Review Brexit Shared Prosperity Fund Ministerial Reshuffle General Election

Paul.Carbert@neechamber.co.uk @NEEChamberPaul