‘FOR too long, growth in the economy has been pinned on a few sectors, such as financial services, while other great British industries have been ignored. Prosperity has been confined to certain postcodes while huge swathes of the country have suffered serial neglect.”

With these words, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg launched a £1.4bn investment pot that could hold the key to the development of hugely exciting industries here in the North-East.

The Regional Growth Fund (RGF) is the backbone to the Coalition Government’s investment efforts to stimulate the economy while it tries to repair the gaping hole in Treasury coffers.

Some commentators have raised concerns that the fund represents a third of the money invested in regional development agencies (RDAs), whose raison d’etre was to drive prosperity in the regions.

However, the North-East has very real opportunities to press its case to be a world leader in technology areas such as low-emission vehicles, carbon capture and storage, and offshore wind power.

The key difference between the money available for RDAs and the RGF is that the RGF is competitive. There will be winners and losers among competing projects and regions. This is a frightening prospect for those areas that have no discernable global advantage but must be seen as a chance for the North-East to shine.

What is clear, though, is that we must focus on submitting bids that are for genuinely transformational projects that will deliver greater prosperity, as well as jobs.

Also, we must co-ordinate bids from different parts of the North-East so we get the best results for this corner of the UK.

Finally, we must drive the message home to the Government – and specifically to the fund allocation panel led by Lord Heseltine – that every £1 invested in the North-East will deliver a greater return than £1 spent elsewhere.

Furthermore, the North-East has a harder job on its hands than other areas when it comes to rebalancing the economy away from the public sector. To be successful, we need investment in developing the technologies of the future. We have the will, we have the expertise and in the monies from the RGF we have the opportunity to propel this part of the world to the forefront of cutting-edge industries.

■ Martyn Pellew is president of the North East Chamber of Commerce.