The Northern Gateway Development Zone has been renamed the Constellation Partnership at the unveiling of the new brand at MIPIM.
Jackie Sadek, independent chair of the collaboration of seven local authorities and two local enterprise partnerships, said: “The new brand is fabulous. It represents our ambition and our collective identity. One of the strengths of the partnership is our diversity, we will be the place in the UK where everything connects – people, businesses and ideas.
“The Constellation Partnership’s ambition is to deliver 120,000 new jobs and 100,000 new homes by 2040, supercharged by the investment in HS2. It is an enormous opportunity that requires a new approach following the approval of the High Speed Rail hybrid bill, one that communicates just how transformational the next decade and beyond will be.
“I believe that the Constellation name will have the right resonance with the markets and a lasting impact. This region, between the Northern Powerhouse and the Midlands Engine is not only nationally important, but also a distinctive constellation of interconnected and complementary niche economies, each important in its own right.”
High speed rail created 116,000 new jobs in Lille between 1993 and 2001, and 56,000 new jobs in Zaragoza in five years and the Constellation Partnership believes that HS2 will have a similar impact.
Duncan Sutherland, HS2 board member and director of regeneration at Sigma Capital, said: “When HS2 arrives, nowhere else in the UK will offer both direct connections to London in 55 minutes and Manchester and Birmingham in around 15 minutes and transform journey times across the rest of the country.
“Within the Constellation region, we can expect to see significant growth ripple from its urban areas of Crewe, Stoke-on-Trent, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stafford, underpinned by unparalleled connectivity to the national transport network, via HS2 connectivity.
“The partners should be congratulated in how they have come together to break down the artificial barriers to growth and jobs, and offer diversity and the co-operation, partnership and community of purpose across boundaries which can hold business back in other city regions.”
