Vikings to the rescue

A POSTER outside a Bigg Market nightspot has confirmed what all of us feared - we are now definitely in a recession.

The picture, a stone's throw away from Journal towers, depicts Gordon Brown with devils horns and a rare cheeky grin with the slogan 'The Recession Session' (£1 a drink on a Monday night for anyone who can afford it).

But that's not the only warning sign in our city centre of what promises to be a winter of discontent for the workers.

A growing number of high street shops seem to be permanently putting down their shutters - a trend which is made all the more depressing by the sombre Eastern European accordion music which increasingly floats through our city streets.

And, as if to heighten the deepening gloom, bosses at Fenwicks department store have chosen Oliver as this year's theme for its Christmas window.

Rows of poverty-stricken orphans dressed in rags, standing inline, cap-in-hand, waiting for more gruel does little to lighten the mood.

However, as we slip into what looks certain to be a traumatic time for businesses across the region, there is a glimmer of hope.

And it comes from the East, in the land of the Northern Lights.

As most European economies have been whitewashed by the current market turmoil, Norway has remained in decent shape.

As one oil and gas expert told me yesterday, the Norwegians don't do recessions or credit crunches.

Our oil-rich Scandinavian neighbours have been very shrewd in keeping their wealth within their own borders - anyone who has been there and paid £9 for a beer will know this only too well.

However, there is a chink in the armour of the Viking economy.

A shortage of engineering and industrial skills is blighting its booming oil, gas and related sectors - a weakness which is only good news for the North East.

I paid a visit to a networking event in Gateshead yesterday aimed at persuading Norwegian businesses to set up in our region.

Within 15 minutes of arriving at The Sage, I had spoken to four businesses who were in the process of setting up a UK base in the North East.

All of them cited more available - and no doubt cheaper - skilled labourers as a major draw to the area.

Another Norwegian boss said it was a 50 / 50 toss up between Newcastle and Aberdeen over where to launch his UK headquarters, however he admitted that he had been impressed by what he had seen so far.

It may be some time before we can offer Norwegian oil and gas men a services infrastructure on a par with that of Aberdeen.

But we are slowly but surely catching up with the Scots through heavy investment and development.

And our relationship with Norway is growing stronger - a trading link which could play a major role in helping the North East ride through the economic storm.

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