THE vital importance of continuing the high-profile campaign to promote Merseyside as a place to invest cannot be overstated.
Nowhere is this more keenly felt than the property sector.
That is why, as a construction business, we have become a sponsor of the Liverpool Embassy, in London.
We want to see Liverpool assert itself as a modern global city.
We have been lucky to work on a number of the big projects that have driven such exceptional progress in recent years, including Liverpool One, the Echo Arena, and Liverpool Lime Street.
These projects have transformed our city, and the city is lucky to have the support of the Duke of Westminster, who has invested in and believed in Merseyside.
However, Merseyside cannot achieve its property ambitions without attracting more investment from London and overseas.
Merseyside has dispelled much of its stereotypical image.
It is recognised as a region with a can-do attitude that can confound expectations.
This is what the Embassy must capture and shout from the rooftops.
Yes, southern cynics may still grumble, but the embassy is about rising above ignorance and changing attitudes with hard facts about our progress. Peel’s Superport and Ocean Gateway plans are tremendous examples of what could happen.
And Peel’s championing of Merseyside at the highest level of government in China cannot be praised highly enough.
However, we cannot get carried away. Peel’s plans reflect the modern world. We are catching up.
And this game of catch-up is becoming much tougher.
Employers’ organisation, the CBI, warned this month that the UK risks losing foreign investment overseas. It pointed to figures that foreign investment in the UK fell during the recession, from $186.4bn in 2007 to $45.7bn in 2009, and the UK’s reputation as a good place to invest is under threat.
This is why Liverpool has been shrewd to go out and bat for itself and follow Capital of Culture with the Shanghai Expo and now the Embassy.
The challenge is to maintain the momentum. Liverpool is one of the few UK cities that is a global power brand.
That is our ace card and we must continue to play it thoughtfully and well – our future depends on it.
