The 18th May 2026 saw a coming together of two strands of work. The refresh and launch of the South West Business Council  (SWBC) vision and mission, and the facilitation of a showcase of major projects already happening and planned in the South West.

SWBC is a Community Interest Company (CIC), dedicated to enabling a thriving business community and driving sustainable growth in the region. I am pleased to be a Director and Chair of SWBC, championing action to unlock growth and create opportunities for businesses and host communities.

During my first six months in post, I spent time listening to the concerns of businesses. Many businesses felt let down after Government budget decisions, with a view that Government action was contradictory to the strategic vision of growth they had set out,  and therefore businesses had low confidence in the future.

Assessing the region and identifying what is already happening and underway, I would say those concerns are absolutely valid, yet prospects for the South West remain bright. We must work as a business community to encourage the Government to collaborate more effectively with the private sector and help them better understand the fragility of economic confidence and the impacts of policies and decision-making if we are to rebuild and strengthen the resilience of the UK.

Our showcase event was a fantastic opportunity to reconnect as the whole of the South West and to share knowledge, raise awareness of all the impressive things underway in the region.

As a South West “team” we can build our collective understanding of the region, enabling us to champion success and effectively communicate ambitions and priorities.

A key message was that only through collaboration can the public and private sectors drive growth in localities –  whether national or at a smaller scale.

It certainly is harder and takes longer to get some things done – dare I say “planning”- and we do need to address this. The South West must be competitive as a destination for investment, so we must create favourable conditions for growth to attract investors to our region.

So, to some headlines:

• The South West is the largest of the nine English regions
• We are one of the most dynamic regions with growth exceeding the national average since 2008
• Home to 6 million residents
• Host of one of the largest construction projects in Europe at Hinkley Point C in Somerset
• We have world-class businesses and world-leading innovation clusters, notably on A1
• The location for a national gigafactory to help decarbonise the UK transport system, making EV batteries
• Plymouth is critical to national defence: it has the largest naval base in Western Europe, is a centre for marine autonomy and is the recipient of a £4.4b defence deal
• Location for strategic assets – ports, airports, road/ rail
• 10 universities, excellent colleges and schools
• We are a sporting giant – with Olympians, top-tier rugby, football, cricket and a huge array of community teams
• The region has nationally significant opportunities to boost home-grown energy and transform economies in Dorset
• The South West is a cultural hot house and more!