A DEVELOPMENT agency for co-operatives in the North-East has re-opened six years after it was forced to close.

Cleveland Co-operative Development Agency closed down in 1996 following the abolition of Cleveland County Council, but was re-launched on Monday at a gathering of the International Institute for Self Management in Middlesbrough.

The Agency is working closely with the University of Teesside to develop the Social and Co-operative Enterprise Network (SCENE) - an electronic networking project to link up co-operatives from around the region.

The Agency also plans to make computer equipment available to local co-operatives to allow them to participate in the network.

Welcoming the Agency's re-launch, Euro MP for Yorkshire and the Humber, David Bowe, said that the co-operative enterprises supported by the Agency had great potential to create wealth for local communities. "What we have planted here today is a seed. I look forward to seeing it germinate and grow," he said.

The Agency's chair, Maureen Taylor, said she believed that the re-launch heralded a new era for co-operation in the region: "More than ever before co-operative enterprise is on the Government's agenda at a national level. We now have a committed team of experienced co-operators in place ready to put it back on the local agenda as well."