The aim of the festival is to unleash a wave of new exporters from Liverpool, Manchester and the north-west of England, by attracting traders from 100 countries to view a showcase of British industry.
“This is the biggest showcase of British business since 1951. It is a shop window for enterprise, for innovation, for creativity,” David Cameron, the prime minister, said during his speech to delegates.
“I believe we are on our way back as a country from the great recession, but there are three things I want to see. I want to see a full economic British revival, I want to see a rebalanced economy and I want to see a recovery that benefits every part of the country.
“You cannot just sit back and hope that will happen, you’ve got to work hard to make it happen.”
The Government is paying half of the festival’s £15m cost, but says that investment in helping companies pays dividends.
In his opening speech, Lord Livingston of Parkhead, the Minister for Trade and Investment, said: “This festival isn’t about history, and neither is this region. It’s about today, and it’s about tomorrow.”
“When I go around the world, I don’t hear people talking about a country anywhere based in the past, I hear them talking about a creative country, a modern country, an innovative country, a country led by design, and one that is actually pretty cool.
“The International Festival of Business sends out a really clear message: the UK is a great place to do business, it’s a great place to start a business and it’s a great place to grow a business.”
During her speech, Ana Botin, Santander’s UK chief executive, said that banks, professional services, government and universities have a shared responsibility to help UK exporters overcome the challenge of entering new markets.
“If we want the economy to grow, if we truly want to help businesses, we should share the responsibility for helping businesses break into new markets,” she said.
“We cannot simply be spectators, cheering from the sidelines: we have to get onto the pitch and play our part.”
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