The Swansea Bay City Deal: Opportunities

The city deal is a hugely complicated project that will require a lot of work by officials to make it a success. There are a long list of concerns, although who would expect any differently from such a multifaceted proposal.

Truthfully, the levels of investment in the region are phenomenal and are potentially transformational. As the world transitions away from industry because of automation, the economy is moving towards being a knowledge or a smart economy. Success in the future will be about developing the next big idea, turning it into a useful product or service and marketing it as such. It is clear to me that this is exactly what the project team have in mind. I can see that the city deal proposal has also benefitted from the input of the private sector. The involvement of multinational firms such as Fujitsu and Cisco show that the proposals are built on strong foundations. If the city region can be made a success, it could trigger a new industrial revolution in out bit of South West Wales. It is focussed on the future, unlike the Cardiff deal which to me feels slightly lost in the present.

The greatest achievement of the deal so far is the scale of its ambition. Negativity breeds negativity and positivity breeds positivity. Positivity is a quality that is often lacking in the Welsh national psyche, particularly when it comes to industry and economics. Decline bread decline. If the concept is accepted by the population, it will help trigger a new wave of positivity and confidence in our not-so-little part of Wales. It's easy to be a cynic because you have nothing to lose. It's tough being an optimist because you can suffer disappointments along the way. It will be a bumpy road and there will be disappointments. There is a chance that some projects will fail. But some of them will succeed. 

This is Part 4 in a series of posts about the proposed Swansea Bay City Region Deal. Part 5 will conclude this series.

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