It’s time to reboot our creative industrial spirit

By John Cowan

A number of manufacturing companies are currently struggling. Look at LDV: it’s tragic for the workers and their familes, who depend on LDV for their living.

It’s hard to belive that a once great nation whose wealth was created by the hard work and innovation of engineers like Brunel, Stephenson and Chapman no longer has much of an engineering base left in the UK.

Part of the problem is the UK’s obession with property and financial services, both valuable and desirable sectors in their own right but not great for the economic structure of a county when they are the only things that seem to recieve any attention from Government.

The amount invested in part-nationalising the banks could equally have been invested in engineering-related industries and increasing the UK’s engineering skill base.

The key for Government is to allow the confidence that comes with creativity to develop and not penalise those members of society who use their creativity to add to the nation’s wealth.

It was the creativity of the industrial revolution which enabled this country to create the wealth to fund things such as the state education system and the National Health Service.

It’s time to reconnect with that creative industrial sprirt.