Liverpool’s MIPIM programme majors on Manchester alliance

Following Liverpool's announcement about its stand design for MIPIM 2015, organisers of the city's delegation have published their calendar of events for the property convention in Cannes next month.

The first presentation, Unlocking the Investment Potential of Manchester and Liverpool, will feature an informal debate with Mayor Joe Anderson, leader of Liverpool City Council, and Sir Howard Bernstein, chief executive of Manchester City Council.

The 2015 programme expands a theme developed in 2014 when Bernstein and Anderson also shared the stage for a debate at MIPIM.

Anderson and Bernstein will also appear together on the Wednesday evening for Devolution: Investing in Leading Cities, an event aimed at building on efforts to improve collaboration between the capital and other UK cities, this partnership event led by London and Manchester will focus on the potential opportunities offered by devolved powers.

Thursday morning features a broader line-up but along the same collaborative theme. Maximising Growth: Investing in the Northern Powerhouse will bring together chief executives from Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle and Manchester councils.

Liverpool will also take the opportunity to link up with international contacts at MIPIM with a stand event where GVA will look at developments on the Waterfront in Hamburg and Liverpool. There will also be an announcement about partners for the 2015 Liverpool International Waterfront Forum on the Liverpool stand on Wednesday 11 March, followed by an informal meeting between the Mayor of Liverpool and the Mayor of Oslo.

Throughout the convention, Liverpool's private sector partners will also take to the stand in a series of events. These include speeches and announcements from Deloitte, Morgan Sindall and City Residential.

Alan Bevan, managing director at City residential, said: "Our event is entitled 'Liverpool – The best value residential market in the UK?' The aim is to highlight some of the major differentials in the pricing amongst other main northern city centres and, when coupled with some of the unique features we have as a city, highlight where we believe there is too large a gap between us and other cities like Manchester."

GVA is due to host an event on the Liverpool stand looking specifically at Wirral and Liverpool Waters and contrasting its ongoing delivery with Hamburg's harbour development, Hafen City.

David Sayer, director of GVA, commented: "Our event will present some intriguing discussion around how Liverpool's flagship scheme and its associated delivery mechanisms compare with those in Hamburg's Hafen City."

Colin Sinclair, director of property marketing at Bruntwood and a member of the steering group for Liverpool at MIPIM, said of the company's stand event: "Workspace is changing. People want more than just an office. This year at MIPIM we're going to be talking about how Liverpool is leading the way in providing businesses with what they need to grow and succeed."

Colliers International will also host an event on the Liverpool stand entitled Regional Revolution: Neo Victorian Britain and the emergence of the Northern Powerhouse.

Walter Boettcher, chief economist and head of research at Colliers International, said: "The weight of international capital, alongside an aging population with pension providers seeking long-term stable returns, means that a once in a generation opportunity for economic transformation has presented itself. Roads, railways, ports, airports, utilities, telecoms, universities, schools, hospitals, elderly care facilities and so on offer assets that often have long lead times, large capital requirements and long paybacks. This large scale infrastructure development also produces the necessary framework for the creation of new geographies, providing new opportunities for real estate development across all asset classes.

"In our presentation, we'll assess this once in a generation opportunity and open the floor to MIPIM delegates to discuss what is required to develop a firm foundation for the next 100 years; one that will benefit both the general economy and the emerging Northern Powerhouse."

Liverpool at MIPIM is led and managed by Marketing Liverpool, supported by its private sector steering group and partners.