Sir Patrick Vallance, Minister for Science, Research and Innovation and Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor Champion visited Oxfordshire on Monday (17 March).
Sir Patrick Vallance, Minister for Science, Research and Innovation and Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor Champion visited Oxfordshire on Monday (17 March) and met with local councils, universities, businesses and investors to discuss the region’s plans to support sustainable economic growth.
As part of his visit, Lord Vallance took part in a roundtable discussion at the Saïd Business School, hosted by the University of Oxford. The event brought together stakeholders from across Oxfordshire, including representatives from Oxfordshire County Council, Oxford City Council, local businesses, and the universities, to explore opportunities for growth and the challenges that need to be addressed to unlock the region’s full potential.
The session was chaired by Professor Irene Tracey, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford. Discussions focused on how the region’s strengths, including world-leading innovation research sector, high-growth businesses, and strong partnerships between academia, industry, and local government, are driving economic success. Stakeholders also shared insights on barriers to growth, including infrastructure and housing, and explored ways the government could support Oxfordshire’s continued contribution to the UK economy.
Oxford and Oxfordshire are significant net contributors to the national economy and play a vital role in the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, a strategic initiative to unlock economic potential and boost innovation-led growth across the region.
Following the roundtable, Lord Vallance visited ARC Oxford, where he also met representatives from the Ellison Institute of Technology, The Oxford Science Park, and the local councils.
Discussions focused on the importance of infrastructure investment, including the plan to reopen the Cowley Branch Line to passengers. This project, led by Oxford City Council and supported by ARC Oxford, The Oxford Science Park, the Ellison Institute of Technology, and Oxfordshire County Council, aims to improve connectivity to southeast Oxford, link key employment sites, and unlock new homes and jobs to support long-term growth.
Comment
"This week’s discussions were a valuable opportunity to highlight the city’s strong and successful economy, but also to make the case for the infrastructure and homes we need to support that.
“I’m grateful to Lord Vallance for his time, as well as his enthusiasm to hear from people who understand Oxford’s unique position and share his vision. We look forward to working closely with both the Oxford Cambridge Growth Corridor which he chairs, and the Oxford Growth Commission as it is established. Together we are all working to fulfil the city’s full potential and ensure benefits are felt by all its residents, local communities and businesses." - Councillor Susan Brown, Leader of Oxford City Council
“Unlocking the full potential of Oxford and the surrounding county will be a critical part of our efforts to make the Oxford-Cambridge Corridor one of the UK’s key drivers of economic growth, which is a central pillar of the Government’s Plan for Change. Oxford and Oxfordshire is proof of how, when backed by investment and with the right infrastructure, businesses, universities and local Government can build an environment where new ideas can be rapidly transformed into companies and careers” - Sir Patrick Vallance, Minister for Science, Research and Innovation and Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor Champion
“We welcomed the opportunity to meet Lord Vallance and discuss how this ambitious, forward-looking county of ours can drive innovation and sustainable, inclusive growth across the Oxford to Cambridge corridor.
“We want to do everything in our current and future powers through devolution to help Oxfordshire and the wider region reach its full potential.
“We were keen to stress our ambitions at the county council to see greater investment in our rail infrastructure locally and regionally to boost connectivity and productivity as well as urgent action to fix our crumbling water and sewage system, and improve the electricity grid.”- Councillor Liz Leffman, Leader of Oxfordshire County Council
“I was delighted to chair the roundtable discussion where public and private sector colleagues drawn from across the region came together to share with Lord Vallance our collective ambition for the region. It was also a great opportunity to express our willingness to support his work as chair of the Oxford-Cambridge or OxCam ARC and to discuss the many ways in which we can contribute to economic growth and prosperity within the UK. We are so grateful to Lord Vallance for his time and that of his team and we look forward to taking the conversation and actions forward.” - Professor Irene Tracey, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford
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