North East businesses and their leaders have given their views on the outcome of elections across the North East, as Ben Houchen and Kim McGuinness took the key combined authority roles.

Womble Bond Dickinson

Nigel Emmerson, partner and head of  WBD's Newcastle office:

"Congratulations to Kim McGuinness, the newly elected Mayor of the new North East Mayoral Combined Authority.  Womble Bond Dickinson is committed to playing its part in furthering the region's growth agenda and we look forward to working with Kim and the Combined Authority to deliver the full benefits of devolution to the great North East."

Peter Snaith, partner and head of manufacturing at WBD:

“We eagerly await what new opportunities a further term for Ben Houchen will bring to Teesside and its unique combination of infrastructure, capabilities, and assets. At WBD, we remain committed to unlocking the potential of our region, helping established local businesses to grow and supporting inward investors to establish themselves within our region.”

razorblue

razorblue MD Dan Kitchen said: “A big congratulations is due to Ben Houchen, who has proven he can deliver for the region through his track record. The voters have put party politics to one side and have backed him again.

"The results elsewhere were unsurprising, and the conservatives shouldn’t consider the Tees Valley win a success for the party."

North East Chamber of Commerce

John McCabe, chief executive at the North East Chamber of Commerce:

“Congratulations to Ben Houchen on his re-election as Tees Valley mayor. In his first two terms and throughout this campaign, Mayor Houchen has placed an emphasis on economic development.

"I hope that in his third term, we can work ever more closely with the mayor and his team to ensure the benefits of devolution are felt by all businesses and all communities across the Tees Valley.

"I congratulate Kim McGuinness on being elected North East mayor. The Chamber recognises the huge responsibility that is now on Kim and the team around her to deliver the full benefits of devolution to our region. 

“From the day the deal was signed to the announcement of this election result, our members have followed the devolution process with great interest, such is its significance to our economic prospects. 

“On their behalf, the Chamber stands ready to work alongside the mayor, her cabinet and team to ensure we seize this moment together to create the stronger, fairer North East we all aspire to. I’m looking forward to beginning that conversation with the new mayor in the very near future.”

Kinewell Energy

Dr Andrew Jenkins, founder and CEO of Kinewell Energy, said: “As a company operating in the region’s green economy, we look forward to hearing more about her new initiatives to empower local businesses and create more green jobs. We know first-hand the value these kinds of interventions can deliver for the economic development of the region.

“We share Kim’s enthusiasm for sustainability and the critical road to net-zero. Climate change is the greatest social and environmental challenge humans have faced. But we are committed to leveraging our knowledge and skills to provide solutions capable of sparking truly transformative change. 

“As passionate innovators, we channel our expertise into developing innovative technologies that add significant value whilst driving real, positive social and environmental change. 

“We’ve been fortunate to benefit from previous funding through the North of Tyne Combined Authority (NTCA) TIGGOR programme that has enabled us to accelerate the development of our state-of-the-art SaaS solutions that use advanced mathematics and AI to optimise the design of offshore wind farms. 

“We look forward to working with Kim and their team at the newly established North East Combined Authority and hope our skills, experience and expertise will help ensure the region’s green industries continue to prosper and grow.”

Developing Consensus

Sandra Manson, Chair of Developing Consensus and Executive Director of Pegasus Group:

“We would like to congratulate and welcome Kim McGuinness as North East Mayor. 

“As a membership group representing over 120 private and public sector organisations within the property and development industry, we are looking forward to building upon our positive working relationship with the North East Mayoral Combined Authority, so that we can maximise the region’s devolution deal and build a thriving development and investment market.

“We are looking forward to building upon our work within our key pillar groups of inward investment, enabling development, planning and infrastructure and hope that we can continue productive dialogue within each sector as the new Mayor takes office.”