WHEN companies are looking at potential locations for investment, the quality and flexibility of the local workforce is a key consideration.

And if any investor wanted evidence of what the North-East has to offer, it need look no further than the Nissan success story, which has reached an exciting new chapter.

Our front page headline yesterday made a bold prediction: "Nissan to unveil a vision for the future."

It proved to be spot on, with confirmation that Nissan is to build a new family car - the Qashqai - at its Wearside plant, securing thousands of jobs.

It is, of course, not just about the workers employed directly by Nissan. The benefits of yesterday's announcement will be felt throughout the region thanks to the knock-on effect on Nissan's supply chain.

And what a nice change it makes to be able to report some genuinely positive news for the region's economy instead of the depressingly frequent instalments of bad news resulting from the manufacturing crisis.

The Government has played its part, providing a £5m grant from the Department of Trade and Industry to help the company move forward.

But the most vital ingredient has been the workforce, which has made Sunderland the most productive car plant in Europe for the past seven years.

If those workers weren't performing at world-class levels, Nissan would not be investing so much of its future in the North-East and they deserve our congratulations.