Cheshire business leaders meet Small Business Minister to discuss post-Covid priorities

Representatives of the Cheshire Business Group have visited Paul Scully, Under-Secretary of State for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets, to discuss priorities for Cheshire and Warrington businesses as the economy recovers from Covid.

The meeting covered Cheshire and Warrington’s unique challenges and the considerable potential of the county as a place to live, work and invest, including Cheshire and Warrington LEP’s Recovery Plan, opportunities in a growing economy and business support.

The delegation comprised Chris Manka (FSB North West Regional Chair); Phil McCabe (FSB Development Manager, Merseyside and Cheshire); Richard Huxley (IOD Cheshire Chair) and Andy Devaney (Director of Business Innovation, Cheshire and Warrington LEP).

The CBG also includes the CBI, Chambers of Commerce, the NFU, Groundwork and the Business Improvement Districts, which provided input ahead of the meeting.

Paul Scully, Under-Secretary of State for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets, said: “Cheshire and Warrington has an amazing variety of businesses and has showed its resilience throughout the pandemic – now we need to work together, not just to recover but to build back better. I’m really looking forward to working with the business community in Cheshire and Warrington to make that happen.”

Chris Manka, FSB North West Regional Chair, said: “It is great to see the Government – in this case the Small Business Minister – engaging with the business community in Cheshire and Warrington.

“It’s so important that ministers understand the real issues on the ground affecting small businesses across the county.

“We were able to cover a lot of issues and I’m encouraged that this is only the start of an ongoing dialogue with government on the challenges and fantastic opportunities in Chesdhire and Warrington.”

Andy Devaney, Director of Business Innovation at Cheshire and Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “This meeting has been a great opportunity for the LEP and FSB to highlight to Minister Scully, just how small businesses across our sub-region have been impacted over the last year and what challenges they are still facing.

“We were also able to showcase how our businesses are now building back their businesses and how this has informed our Recovery Strategy, which we have worked with colleagues from FSB and the Cheshire Business Group to create.  We also showcased some of the exciting future opportunities in our sub-region that will be instrumental for ongoing growth, including clean energy and our world-class life sciences sector.”

The Recovery Plan can be viewed here