THE grave situation at the Rothmans factory in Darlington highlights the plight facing North-East manufacturing.

Those in the Home Counties may be judging the health of the economy by the spiralling value of their properties. And to a large extent, house price inflation is dictating the Government fiscal policies.

People in our region are judging the health of the economy by the increasingly flimsy security of their jobs.

Keeping a lid on the housing market in the South-East is doing nothing to stem the haemorrhage of jobs from manufacturing firms in the North-East.

The time has come for the Government to recognise that the economy in the North is running at a much slower speed than the South.

The North-East's heavy reliance on manufacturing makes it vulnerable when firms, such at Rothmans, consider moving abroad where labour costs are cheaper.

The Government needs to accept that there are special circumstances in this region which warrant support to both safeguard existing jobs and additional help create new jobs to replace those lost overseas.

Time and time again in recent years our region has shown that it has the resilience to overcome seemingly dire economic situations.

We have survived the loss of coal mining, shipbuilding and cutbacks in the steel industry.

We have demonstrated that, given the right conditions, this region has the skilled labour force and flexibility to embrace new industries and flourish.

Sadly, we can not compete with the ridiculously low manufacturing costs in the emerging economies of Eastern Europe and the Far East.

The onus on the Government is to offer incentives which create a level playing field on which we can compete on equal terms with the rest of the world.

In proposing devolved power, ministers recognise that the North-East requires a framework of policies with a regional dimension.

Sadly, we can not afford to wait until a regional assembly is created.

The Government must provide the necessary resources and put down the foundations on which our economy can prosper.