Newcastle has always been a city of innovation and progress. At the height of the industrial age, the River Tyne was the ‘workshop of the world' – producing trains, ships and engines that powered industries the world over, and have had a lasting and profound impact. It has always been a city of trade and commerce – an outward and international city – a heady mix of regional identity, national importance, and global reach. It is a city that links England with Scotland, the UK with Northern Europe and our traditional past with an exciting future.

The city and the wider North East once powered the nation. The Great Northern Coalfield – stretching from Northumberland to Durham – provided the raw material that made ‘coals to Newcastle' such a household phrase. The new £4.2bn North East Devolution Deal shows we can still punch above our collective economic weight. But these days, the raw material has changed.