The wind of change is blowing – a blog by Steve Wooler

The wind of change is blowing…..

This well known, and often quoted, phrase was the introduction to a famous speech given by Harold Macmillan to the South African Parliament in 1960. The context was the British Government signalling its intent to grant independence to former British Colonies in Africa.

 “The wind of change is blowing through this continent. Whether we like it or not, this growth of national consciousness is a political fact”.

There are parallels today of course with the political debate about devolution in the UK, and last week’s referendum in Scotland. The politics that played out, and the promises that were made, in the run up to that historic vote will have huge implications on future governance of the UK. In particular there is a rising clamor for local decision making and spending powers to be decentralised from Westminster. That genie is now well and truly out of the bottle! Local Enterprise Partnerships in England, and perhaps even yet to be formulated Regional Assemblies for the North and the Midlands, will take on increasing responsibility for deciding where and how money is spent. Those decisions will include optimally targeted investment in key social and economic infrastructure that, in turn, demand rigorous assessment and prioritisation of competing projects.

So what exactly has that got to do with the engineering profession and consultancy, I hear you ask! The answer is quite simple; a huge amount. And that is the main reason that I’m delighted to have been asked to become the Chairman of the Midlands Region of  Association for Consultancy and Engineering [ACE]. This is a really exciting time to be involved with ACE because its influence and profile in the national infrastructure debate is growing to the point where politicians of all political persuasions are, at long last, listening to the engineering profession. Not just listening either, but also heeding its expert advice and acting on its recommendations. This is a relatively recent, but hugely significant turn of events that, as a profession, gives Consultants and Engineers a powerful voice and real influence in government policy and investment decisions – something that we have never before enjoyed, not in my lifetime at least. The likes of Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Thomas Telford were possibly the first, and last, of the engineers who carried real political clout and influence, and that was hundreds of years ago when the world was much less complex!

However, whilst ACE enjoys high profile and growing influence on a national stage it’s also fair to say that this is not replicated in the English Regions or devolved Nations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This needs to change, and quickly, to ensure that we have an influential voice with the English Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPS) that will decide where, and how, regional investment is made in social and economic infrastructure. Whilst ACE has historically had some presence and impact in the West Midlands, it has been largely unknown and unrepresented in the East Midlands.  Given the changing political landscape, that fragmentation simply cannot be allowed to continue.  As a profession, we have the ability to effectively influence the political debate and provide the technical expertise that will be required to ensure the Midlands gets its fair share of government funding for key infrastructure and investment in economic regeneration.

I’ve been tasked by ACE’s Chief Executive, Dr Nelson Ogunshakin, OBE with improving the reach and relevance of ACE across the Midlands as the first essential step to ACE being seen as a trusted advisor to the political decision makers in the region. That will require a number of inter-connected actions, including;

  • Increasing the number of member firms in the region,  as a priority (ACE relies on a broad and representative corporate membership for its credibility as the voice of the professional engineering community, as well as for its financial viability )
  • Engaging many more engineers to take an interest in, and responsibility for, promoting the profession and the fundamental value it brings to our society and built environment
  • Forming alliances with other professional  institutions such as ICE, IStructE and RICS, as well as other  like-minded professionals working in the Built Environment and Academia, to speak with ‘one voice’
  • Encouraging the younger members within the Consultancy and Engineering community, who are the future leaders of their respective firms, to become engaged with current affairs and the tough decisions that are needed when obtaining ‘best value’ from investment decisions
  • Building ‘trusted advisor’ status with key decision makers and influencers across the Midlands.

This is a challenge I’m really looking forward to taking up. I hope I can count on widespread support and participation in making the challenge the success it needs to be if the engineering and consultancy profession is to take full advantage of the winds of change that are reshaping the UK’s political and economic landscape.