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news opinion
Roll on, 2013. That’s what most business people will think as one year finishes and another looms large
For many companies, 2012 was a year best forgotten although, in any downturn, there are always businesses that shine bright in the gloom.
The 46 finalists of the Thames Valley Business Magazine Awards and the key companies in the Solent 250 are just some of those that have successfully outperformed their competitors over the past year.
They hear talk of recession and downturn and think: “That’s someone else’s problem. We are just getting on being nimble, thinking creatively, looking for new markets, reducing our costs, and driving sales.“
Of course, the economy has taken a battering in recent years, but there are signs that we are crawling our way out of the hole. As we go to press, unemployment is down, as the private sector gains in confidence and starts to hire again. Demand for staff has grown in both manufacturing and service sectors.
Inflation is a problem. Energy costs will drive up prices over the winter, and the Bank of England thinks that inflation will remain above target for at least another six months.
Funding – or the lack of it – will be a brake on recovery. The reluctance of the traditional banks to lend to SMEs will mean that alternative funders will continue to gain profile in 2013, and the Government will have to find creative ways to get money out to the front-line where it can do some good.
Any SME that has survived the recession deserves to pour a glass or two of bubbly over the festive break. And to raise the glass to what should be a better year ahead.
A merry Christmas and a happy new year to all our readers and advertisers.
David Murray Publisher
Nikki Honer promotes surfing to work by bus
www.businessmag.co.uk
Hampshire cities make second wave of City Deals
News that Southampton and Portsmouth will be among the next cities to enjoy devolved power in exchange for delivering economic growth locally has been welcomed by Business Solent.
The organisation said news that both Hampshire cities, and nearby Bournemouth, were included in the second wave of City Deals was extremely positive.
Francis Davis, public policy expert for Business Solent and former adviser to both the secretary of state for local government and the minister for cities, said he hoped local leaders could land more from the Government than at first they would offer and that the Government should go
further still, beyond the 20 areas announced by deputy prime minister Nick Clegg.
“The City Deals approach is centred on a renegotiation of powers from the centre to localities such as ours. Especially in the aftermath of the Ford closure, the Solent’s leaders should be pushing hard by generating strikingly innovative new offers to government,“ he said.
“We hope too that the Government will announce an additional County Deal so the offer now being made to the Southampton and Portsmouth area is extended to the area of the M3 and the rural enterprises which make up so much of our county and the central south.“
Bus service offers Wi-Fi
Davis said that the role of the Partnership for Urban South Hampshire (PUSH), local authorities, business associations and federations as well as the obvious candidates would be crucial: “This is undoubtedly brilliant news for the region, but it is important for the local authorities with their influence over infrastructure, planning and education provision to be central to encouraging the right conditions to unlock growth.
“Ministers will want not just a powerful case from the Local Economic Partnership, but steps towards a combined authority which can really take bold steps to drive growth and jobs.“
City Deals are a key part of the Government’s objectives of rebalancing the economy and boosting private sector growth. The second wave of City Deals aims to accelerate the pace of decentralisation and unlock new and innovative ways to drive growth. Deals will represent a genuine transaction between cities and government, with ’asks’ and ’offers’ from both sides.
The successful more M1 and M2 bus services, operated by Wilts & Dorset between Poole, Bournemouth Castlepoint and Southbourne, are the first in the area to be fully Wi-Fi equipped.
Wilts & Dorset has funded the £150,000 to add the specialist hardware to give customers the opportunity to surf the Internet on smartphones, tablets and laptops while on the move.
“We are confident that the introduction of Wi-Fi to the fleet of 36 buses will prove popular,“ said Nikki Honer, commercial manager at more. “While motorists have a frustrating journey to work, our customers will be able to choose to either work or surf the net for pleasure on free Wi-Fi.“
In the February issue of The Business Magazine
• Solent 250 Dinner • Southern Tech 100 • Meetings & Your Business • HR Focus • Great Places to Work • Funding your Business
Details: 0118-9766411
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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – DECEMBER 12/JANUARY 13
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