FOR a number of years the North-East has had one of the fastest growing economies in the UK.

A combination of talent, ambition and creativity has seen business start-ups on the increase and established firms going from strength to strength. We have created a business landscape that is a rich tapestry of firms spanning all sizes and sectors.

The impact of this success is clear in the exponential growth in offices and warehouses in every corner of the North-East.

Developers have shown ever increasing levels of interest in the region, which is a testament to the confidence we have engrained in the business community.

However, the Government’s decision to remove the rate relief on empty property has threatened to pull the rug from under the feet of this recovery.

The recent success has been built on a groundswell of confidence and the boom in commercial property echoed that.

We were seeing more and more speculative building creating commercial accommodation.

But, removing rate relief has dented confidence among developers and we have even seen some take the hard decision to pull down units because the burden of paying rates on buildings that stood empty was too great a price. At its heart, then Chancellor Gordon Brown’s move to reverse empty property rates relief was a strike against London and South-East developers that were sitting on deserted commercial buildings whose prices were going sky high in the property boom.

In removing the relief, he hit that small minority, but the impact on the rest of the regions has been both unnecessary and extremely damaging. The Pre-Budget Report showed that Alistair Darling recognised the unwelcome impact of his policy. But, a one-year stay of execution on the smallest offices is woefully inadequate.

By launching the Building on Success campaign today, North-East Chamber of Commerce and The Northern Echo are sending a message that greater steps must be taken to avoid this being an unwelcome and lasting legacy. The revenue this policy will bring the Government is far outweighed by its negative impact. The sooner the Chancellor realises this, the better.

■ James Ramsbotham is chief executive of the North-East Chamber of Commerce.