PROPOSALS on providing more homes in Belfast city centre and completely reshaping the city with more social and green space, a café culture and sustainable transport were outlined in a newly published ‘Reset for Growth’ report.
The recently-commissioned Belfast Innovation and Inclusive Growth Commission had been tasked with focusing on inclusive growth which benefits the whole community.
It has published a number of forward-looking proposals for the city and region which it says is “a serious plan to reset the city’s prospects over the next 10 years.”
And the commission, chaired by former BBC chair Sir Michael Lyons and made up of global and national and experts, manufacturers and commerce, will reconvene in a year’s time to report on progress.
The report stresses that urgent and radical action is needed to turn around the north’s struggling economy and deliver better future opportunities for people living here.
And the commission has set out a wide range of propositions to amplify the city and region’s future success under focused action areas:
:: More globally relevant – Belfast and the region needs to up its game in supporting trade and investment successes. The opportunity exists for the region to punch well above its weight, but it must seize it.
:: Immediate action on climate change and turning this into an economic opportunity – the report recommends starting with retrofitting homes across the region and decarbonising transport to reduce demand on fossil fuels, with a target for Belfast to be carbon neutral by 2050.
:: Housing development – Housing development needs to sit at the core of the city’s renewal plans. The provision, quality and affordability of housing is a key ingredient to a city’s attractiveness as well as offering a significant economic benefit.
:: Stronger core city – Belfast and other economic hubs need investment to bounce back from Covid-19 and other underlying economic and social challenges if they are to drive the region’s recovery.
:: A laser focus on building world-renowned business clusters – through large scale investment in research and innovation and developing capability and talent.
The report recommends housebuilding at scale to provide more homes in the city centre, for the first time putting homes at the heart of economic recovery and challenging the public sector to incentivise this with land in its ownership.
It also outlines that how the city looks and works needs to be completely reshaped with more social and green space, café culture and sustainable transport, drawing on the best examples across the globe.
The commission is also clear that these propositions need to be delivered in a way that reduces the gap in living standards across local communities, with a significant focus on developing new ways of supporting people to develop skills and retrain for future jobs.
Sir Michael said: “The commission was challenged to come up with actions that would promote the growth of investment and jobs for Belfast and beyond.
“We have consistently focussed on practical measures, especially those which will serve to protect the environment and address existing inequalities. We have done this against the backdrop of the Covid crisis which has further damaged the city’s economic fabric. We are confident that our recommendations, taken together, offer a serious plan to reset the city’s prospects over the next 10 years.”
He added: “The likely impact of our proposals goes well beyond Belfast and its surrounding areas because we are clear that the city’s economic health is vital to the whole of Northern Ireland, and indeed the UK.
“They will call for bold leadership and energetic efforts by the various agencies and governments who share an interest in the future prosperity of Northern Ireland.
“We have had several conversations with departments of the NI Executive and know that they are together developing key policies for the economy, skills, and energy as well as a wider Covid recovery plan.
“The commission is confident its work will assist the Executive with its plans; not least because of our emphasis on practical measures that can be started quickly and the strong partnership that has been forged between Belfast-based commissioners and their agencies.”
“Uniquely, many of the local commissioners have agreed to champion each of the main propositions and continue to influence their implementation,” Sir Michael added.
Commission members:
Sir Michael Lyons, non-exec chairman, English Cities Fund
Tim Brundle, director research and impact, Ulster University
Emma Cariaga, joint head of Canada Water Development, British Land
Alice Charles, lead, cities infrastructure and urban services, World Economic Forum
Professor Neil Gibson, chief economist for Ireland, EY
Prof Ian Greer, president and vice-chancellor, Queen’s University
Dame Rotha Johnston DBE
Grainia Long, chief executive, Northern Ireland Housing Executive
Angela McGowan, regional director, CBI Northern Ireland
Ann McGregor-Sistern MBE, chief executive, Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce
Joe O’Neill, chief executive, Belfast Harbour
Matthew Taylor, chief executive, RSA
Judith Totten MBE, non-executive board member, Invest NI
Dr Ed Vernon OBE
Suzanne Wyle, chief executive, Belfast City Council
John Greer, director of economic development, Belfast City Council
