The earnings of workers in Halton, compared with the earnings of the borough’s employed residents showed the residents earned between 10% and 20% less than the comparative worker.

The report states that the "broad implication is that many of the ‘good’ jobs in the borough are taken by in-commuters".

And there is little confidence among the report’s authors that this situation will change despite the clear and sustainable changes taking place in the local economy.

Starting from an estimate of a net gain of 4,600 jobs up to 2020, the HER suggests 42% will require a qualification of NVQ level 4 or above (equivalent to a diploma and one level below a degree).

The consequence, the report suggests, will be that without improvement in skill levels locally, "jobs coming on-stream at this level are likely to be taken by non-Halton residents" while at the same time "opportunities for those with no/low qualifications will continue to narrow".

Which explains Mr Parr’s concern at tackling the long-term challenges as well as his emphasis on the £100m investment in the Building Schools for the Future programme which is under way in Halton.

But it is far from doom and gloom in the borough, which has much to be positive about in the medium and long-term.

Halton’s business base has grown each year in the last decade, from just under 1,900 VAT-registered businesses in 1998 to more than 2,400 in 2007. The 28% increase – which does mask a significant churn – is significantly higher than the growth rates for the North West and the UK.

HALTON is also projected to grow its gross value added (GVA) – a measure of the borough’s economic output – from £2.2bn to £2.99bn by 2020, with the borough again outperforming the regional and national growth rate averages.

There is serious investment in the area, with Stobart Group already having committed more than £60m in its 3MG scheme – the latest part of which will provide 3.5m sq ft of new warehousing and create 5,000 new jobs – while the Government has assigned a similar level to the science facilities at Daresbury.

Mr Parr said: "The fact that world- class science is delivered at Daresbury and will continue to be delivered there is a powerful statement about how Halton can deliver for the people of Halton and for UK plc.