Memorandum from TUC (YH 13)

 

Relationship with the TUC

· The TUC believes that there is a need for a wider trade union perspective within the governance arrangements for RDAs

· The role of Yorkshire Forward is in a process of change alongside that of Local Authorities and we are very optimistic that this challenge will be met with the same level of commitment as in the previous years.

· Partners in Yorkshire and Humber have made a recognised contribution to regional policy in the past and should be given the opportunity to do so in the future.

"the role and responsibilities of Yorkshire Forward"

1. Yorkshire Forward (YF) has an incredibly strong relationship with the TUC at a regional and national level, a partnership the TUC greatly values. Over the years the Regional Development Agency (RDA) and the TUC have worked together in a variety ways to raise awareness of issues like the lower carbon economy, saved and safeguarded jobs at Selby Coal in 2004 and Corus Steel Works in Sheffield in 2009 and shared market intelligence to mitigate the impact of economic crises.

2. This strong partnership has been amplified by the YF funded Regional Policy Officer, who has been in post since 2005 and whose contract was renewed in April 2009 to run for another three years. The TUC are delighted YF have continued to fund this post as it has proved an incredibly effective way of ensuring union representation and input to regional boards, strategies and research, with the corollary benefit being YF's work is promoted across the regional union network.

3. YF continue to have the RDA national lead for the TUC, which has resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding between the network and the TUC - signed in November 2008 - which further strengthens the bond between the two bodies.

"Accountability"

4. Until recently Yorkshire Forward has been scrutinised at a regional level by the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly (YHA) scrutiny board. As a partnership of all local authorities in the region and representatives of various economic, social and environmental sectors this arrangement has worked well, utilising evidence from a wide range of viewpoints.

 

5. The new scrutiny arrangements under the new regional select committee and regional grand committee will need to ensure that we maintain the excellent level of partnership working that has been fostered by Yorkshire Forward as we believe that partners working together bring a strength and variety of views, which is more than the sum of its parts. Partners in Yorkshire and Humber have made a recognised contribution to regional policy in the past and should be given the opportunity do so in the future.

 

6. The TUC agrees with recommendations that RDA boards will need members with experience of working with regional stakeholders. The TUC believes that there is a need for a wider trade union perspective within the governance arrangements for RDAs. Trade unions represent millions of working people across every region and in a range of sectors. This gives unions an unparalleled ability to access networks in workplaces throughout the region, providing invaluable experience and knowledge to the development of regional economic strategies. However, the current restriction to simply one seat means that the responsibility for ensuring an effective contribution from the trade union movement falls to one individual. It also restricts the ability of the union movement to reflect the broad diversity of the working population. Given that RDA boards only have one seat for trade union members while half of the boards are reserved for employers, the TUC would strongly urge the Government to consider an increase in the number of seats for trade union members on RDA boards.

 

7. In addition we welcome the further commitment from Yorkshire Forward in the statement on how it has made additional arrangements in relation to scrutiny of its performance. "As well as being accountable to government, Yorkshire Forward strongly believes that as a public agency it is accountable to its many stakeholders, including partner organisations such as local authorities and the business community. For this reason, Yorkshire Forward conducts an annual stakeholder survey to help gauge whether partners and stakeholders are clear about the work we are doing and happy with our performance." This is a mechanism the TUC have used to provide our views on their performance and we would like to see a more formal element to this in the future.

" the process by which the Regional Economic Strategy (RES) was drawn up and the level of involvement of regional stakeholders in that process;

8. The current Regional Economic Strategy was drawn up in an open and robust way. It was based on clear evidence and using extensive consultation with a high number of wide-ranging stakeholders. This involved workshops, consultation drafts and written submissions. We would like to see this continued with the development of an integrated regional strategy and expect that the trade unions will be involved as a matter of course.

 

" the effectiveness of the RES for Yorkshire and the Humber in delivering against its targets;

9. Yorkshire Forward has been instrumental in championing the delivery of the Regional Economic Strategy, which outlines the region's ambitions for helping people to access good jobs, skills and transport, helping business to start up, grow and compete through innovation. Performance to date has been satisfactory and as a result of hard work from all stakeholders and partners we have;

· Improved on 22 indicators

· Deteriorated on 8 indicators

· Steady, mixed or uncertain on 5 indicators

10. There are a number of challenges yet to be overcome including the levels of people on incapacity benefit, improving education and skills performance and connecting people to jobs. These are all areas that the TUC would like to see improvements made and are well placed to assist in making some real headway through our well placed networks and structures. We are keen to see our role given a much more prominent profile so that the issues mentioned can be tackled in true partnership fashion benefitting individuals and organisations all across the region.

 

11. YF operates against an odd regional phenomenon, where businesses are less likely to train their employees, and tend to look to the public sector to pay for it. Businesses are failing to see the link between higher skills and opportunities and competitiveness. However, irrespective of these approaches YF and its partners (Learning and Skills Council (LSC), Business Link, JobCentre Plus, trade unions, employer representative groups, skills councils, learndirect, local education authorities and the Higher Education Funding Council for England) deliver a successful, targeted skills programme.

12. YF and its partners have identified shortfalls in the market - mainly in Maths and English - and funded projects that help build the knowledge economy, whilst not ignoring traditional industries. This approach has improved the employability of the whole workforce as they are able to take advantage of the economic restructure the region has undergone in the last 20 years, following the decline of more traditional industries and the rise of the hi-tech and green sectors in the Calder Valley and South Yorkshire.

13. The work of the West Yorkshire Skills Partnership, being delivered by the LSC has played a significant role in enabling people to progress to a higher level of skills (especially NVQ level 4), as well as advising on skills strategy, to ensure that employers have the correct skills support to sustain their businesses. This has helped sustain employment and will help with employment opportunities in the future, something else the TUC welcomes.

" the effect of the current financial and economic situation on businesses, including the effect on different sectors and on skills and employment in the region;

14. There have been a number of initiatives instigated to deal with the problems we have faced in this region in terms of the economic downturn and the loss of jobs as a result of this. The TUC are involved in a number of committees that seek to deal with the particular issue we face in the region. These include Financial Services task group, the regional skills partnership (which is now incorporated into the new structure) and the Economic Delivery Group.

 

There is a lot of help and support available to businesses that are facing financial difficulties and while this is helpful many sources have reported back that it is too difficult and time consuming to access funding support. This has been acknowledged by Yorkshire forward and there have been steps taking to simplify the processes through the first point of contact, business link. The TUC have been heavily involved in promoting take up of the train to gain offer and have achieved some real change in this area which is something that has been achieved with the support and joint working with the Yorkshire Forward team. We have also worked with all major stakeholders and partners including Yorkshire Forward in sharing information and resources on job losses and vacancies culminating in a dedicated webpage with details of all the support available.

" the role of other Government agencies such as the Government Office for Yorkshire and the Humber, and of partnerships between Government agencies, local government and the private sector, in delivering the aims of the RES;

15. Yorkshire Forward has been the main motivation behind implementing the RES the other agencies and stakeholders involved have established a true partnership working structure, whereby all participants are clear of their responsibilities in delivering the strategy. There was wide consultation on drafting the strategy and this has now been transformed into a number of close working relationships between the partners and those involved in delivery which has resulted in achieving some real gains in regional economic growth and improvements against a number of regional indicators. The trade unions have played a valuable role in this process by directly being responsible for delivery and assisting in a number of initiatives that have improved the understanding in the private and public sectors of the value of trade union engagement in tackling the issue we face in the region.

 

" the move towards a regional integrated strategy and the likely effect on the work of Yorkshire Forward;

 

16. It is recognised that the issues YF seeks to tackle are complex and entrenched, and as such require equally long and complex responses. YF have been key in establishing ongoing discussions between stakeholders and local authorities about the precise role that they will play in new arrangements - for instance how they will relate to the development of the single integrated regional strategy and how they may work within the new Board structures. While the structure has been put in place the exact nature of how stakeholders will be involved is not yet clear and the TUC would emphasize the important role we play in gaining access to workplaces and again request that we are provided with increased representation within the new arrangements. YF have been extremely pro-active in engaging all interest groups to ensure their understanding of their role and work programme.

" the extent to which Yorkshire Forward has the capacity and expertise to address all the elements which will be contained in the new integrated strategy, including in relation to transport, planning and housing; and

17. Yorkshire Forward has a very professional well motivated staff team and we have full confidence in their ability to deliver on their newly acquired responsibilities. With a number of staff who had a particular expertise gained from working for the regional assembly joining the organisation there is an addition capacity to deal with the extra elements of the integrated strategy. There is however an issue of the reduction in income that was awarded to Yorkshire Forward which may cause a very real problem in terms of ensuring the expertise and personnel are available. The added problem of having an increased responsibility and then having a reduction in income is one that may well prove to be a real hurdle in delivery. There is an additional issue here in that a number of those previously involved in transport, planning and housing on the regional assembly may not be involved in the newly implemented structures. It is hoped that these individuals will be able to utilise their expertise through stakeholder engagement therefore ensuring we do not lose a valuable resource for the region.

 

18. We are also concerned that the new arrangements emerging from the Sub National review signal a policy framework with a very narrow focus on GVA and economic growth, but without wider awareness of the issues around inclusion and the environment. There need to be voices that can constructively challenge this focus. This is a role that we have traditionally played within our region, one that we would wish to continue.

" the role of Yorkshire Forward in promoting a low-carbon economy in the region and in addressing regional issues concerning climate change and flooding.

19. Due to high levels of industry and traditional power generation, Yorkshire & Humber is a high CO₂-producing region with emissions continuing to rise.

The environment is one area Yorkshire Forward has consistently led the region over the last ten years. Their initiation and delivery of a number of groundbreaking schemes has created a huge number of jobs and inward investment and established Yorkshire and Humber as arguably the 'green' region in England. The current RES launched in 2006 is the foundation of much of YFs current policy, as it was the first in the UK to include strict regional targets for reducing green house gas emissions emissions, known as Carbon Action Yorkshire (CAY). CAY works with YF's public, private and voluntary and community sector partners, notably the NHS, and is on target to deliver the 25 % reduction in greenhouse gases by 2016.

 

20. Taking such an active role in the environmental agenda is not restricted to moral motivations; there are huge economic benefits to be had for regional people and businesses. The region's Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project is the most prominent example of YF's leadership.

21. In June 2007, YF established a CCS Partnership to bring together all interested industrial and commercial stakeholders to asses what benefit CCS would bring to the region. After the foundation of the group, YF led a study to understand what would be needed to develop an open source CO₂ transport network across the region. It is estimated that the development of a CCS network will create up to 55,000 jobs during construction and increase regional GDP by £1.8 billion during the 15 year construction phase. The long term operation of the network could be worth £31billion to the regional economy. These figures are hugely significant and would secure the long term future of the regional economy.

22. Post-construction, the network would create and safeguard a number of regional jobs in the green sector, and whilst it is difficult to predict the numbers at present, with the interest being shown in the technology from China and India, they are likely to be significant, sustainable and highly skilled. Corollary impacts would be seen in the skill levels of these workers, boosting general regional attainment levels, whilst also offering potential up-skilling opportunities for those interested in a career change.

23. The Yorkshire bid is much more cost efficient than similar bids - even with its larger scale - because it seeks to use existing natural gas pipelines, incorporate all single point carbon emitters and the region's proximity to empty North Sea gas fields, all of which demonstrate YF's commitment to economies of scale and value for money - two crucial values in the current economic climate.

24. The environmental benefits are equally impressive. There are three large emitters in the region that intend to capture CO₂ by the end of 2013 and after construction the network would reduce the UK carbon emissions by almost 10 % by 2030.

25. The TUC has its own strong green agenda and have been delighted with the lead YF have shown on CCS. The environmental and economic benefits to the region are enormous and YF's leadership and ability to make the business, local and regional cases due to their strategic position have been crucial, without which this scheme would not have taken off as it has, nor would it have the support it now enjoys from a variety of public, political and private sector partners.

 

 

 

 

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