26 . Glasgow Business December 2014
IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR 2014
Stuart Patrick, Chief Executive, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce with Rob Woodward, Chief Executive, STV at Glasgow Talks
It has been a year like no other in the history of Glasgow and your Chamber T
he eyes of much of the world have been on our city in the summer as we welcomed the
Commonwealth Games, in the months leading up to the referendum and in these past few weeks as the MTV European Music Awards came to Glasgow. Add into that heady mix the
part Glasgow played in Scotland’s hosting of the Ryder Cup and all the events in the Year of Homecoming that have brought visitors to the city. But the excitement is not over
yet as this final issue of Glasgow Business for the year goes to press – there will be a last hurrah for the city in this remarkable year when the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2014 awards ceremony is hosted at Te SSE Hydro in December. So the year has allowed the city to be visited by athletics
supporters, international golf enthusiasts and modern music fans from many different countries around the world. And it has allowed the ‘dear
green place’ to be showcased to hundreds of millions more people watching on their television screens from Delhi to Dallas, from Melbourne to Mexico and from Papua New Guinea to Paris. Tere has been a worldwide
audience too for political events, with the way the independence referendum was conducted in Scotland being reported, discussed and debated around the world. In all these events, Glasgow
Chamber of Commerce and its members have played a central role in helping our city to host the events and providing a welcome specifically to international business visitors. It is perhaps one unfortunate
consequence of the referendum campaign that, coming to its climax so soon aſter the Commonwealth Games, it may have slightly overshadowed efforts to build a lasting legacy from the key sporting event. Hopefully that has not been
the case and that Glasgow can keep the incredible spirit that the Games produced alive and, in particular, in the welcome it offers international visitors. One particularly important
event that might have been caught up in the referendum ‘narrative’ was the signing of the Glasgow City Deal, which will mean a very practical boost in the building of important infrastructure in the years ahead, notably in the long-needed ground transport link with Glasgow Airport. Air links and airports have
been a key theme of this year for Scotish business in general and
for Glasgow Chamber in particular with Prestwick Airport being taken into public ownership with the knock on effects on Glasgow Airport. It has been an issue on which your Chamber has campaigned strongly in the past few months and will continue to do so. Another notable Glasgow
Talks programme has featured much on air travel from Heathrow and Gatwick, campaigning to win the West of Scotland business community’s support – along with everyone else’s – to win a second runway. Other speakers included:
Gilad Tiefenbrun, Linn Products; Stewart Regan and Mark Wote, Scotish Football Association; Rob Woodhouse, STV Group; Richard Godfrey, MTV EMA; Dr Katherine Grainger CBE; Geoff Ellis, DF Concerts; John Langford, SECC; Iain Manson,
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