"North Wales needs to be free to evolve its own type of leadership and governance"

CEO, Comtek Network Systems UK Ltd and chair, DBF

Only strong, independent, local leadership can achieve transformative economic growth in North Wales.

Despite enormous potential, the main reason why economic growth is lagging behind in North Wales has been the lack of regional leadership. North Wales has always been led either by Westminster or Cardiff.

History has shown that remote leadership never works, as it will lack the necessary knowledge of local need and potential.

North Wales has got to be given the chance to develop its own kind of local leadership, which would be more relevant and suitable to its local needs and its unique culture.

It is most encouraging to witness all six councils across North Wales recognised the urgent need for a locally-based economic development organisation.

About eight years ago, all the six leaders of North Wales' councils put aside their political differences and established a cohesive economic leadership board called the North Wales Economic Ambition Board.

At the time, and even several years afterwards, the UK and Welsh Governments and even many local organisations, were sceptical about its success.

They also saw this locally established, grassroots organisation as a threat to their remote power. Cynics never expected that six local leaders, with different political persuasions, could put the long-term interests of North Wales' economy and the wellbeing of its communities above their own political careers.

They proved all the doubters wrong.

The team worked tirelessly and resolutely together and evolved the NWEAB into a well-established body of governance.

They embraced the private sector as a close key partner. They established a portfolio management office and appointed a portfolio executive director from the private sector.

The portfolio office has been populated with professionals from key economic sectors. They supported the formation of an independent private sector board called the Business Delivery Board.

The Board's members are business leaders and entrepreneurs from various key sectors of the economy with connections all over the globe.

The BDB scrutinises and challenges all the infrastructure projects on their financial and economic viability and return on investment. I am honoured to be the chair of this fantastic private-sector board.

The NWEAB applied for a development fund called Growth Deal from the UK and Welsh governments. Again, the NWEAB proved all the sceptics wrong and on December 17 signed a historic deal with the UK and Welsh governments and was awarded £240m to deliver some of the most impressive aspirational infrastructure projects for North Wales.

These include: Gigabit speed full-fibre and 5G wireless broadband, renewable energy such as hydrogen hubs (water-based) based in Deeside and Anglesey (to be used as fuel in large vehicles), tidal energy, off-shore wind turbines and solar farms.

Another exciting project is to massively increase the capacity of our international Holyhead port, opening North Wales to global tourism. In addition, there are many other exciting projects that will have transformative effects on the whole of North Wales.

These growth deal projects are expected to attract well over a billion pounds of private sector investment in North Wales, creating high quality sustainable skilled jobs for its citizens.

The NWEAB have clearly and, without any doubt, demonstrated the value of locally-based leadership. North Wales has shown the UK it can create its own version of grassroots governance. We do not need the national governments to tell us how to create and establish formidable and sustainable leadership.

We have seen how remote centralised governance imposed on the local communities fails miserably and public money gets wasted.

North Wales needs to be free to continually evolve its own type of leadership and governance. It will only prosper and become a role model for economic and social success if the government devolves its considerable decision-making power to the local leadership and allows a fair distribution of national funding to North Wales.