Andrew Hebden is Assistant Editor (Business) of The Journal »
Matt James runs fingerprint-recognition technology firm UKB Security »
James Mills is a web developer in the North East of England and founder of Refresh Teesside »
Phil Renton is managing director of North East IT empire Croft »
Andrew Mernin is the Digital Journalist for nebusiness »
Matthew Rippon is an IP lawyer for BHP Law »
Formerly editor of a national business lifestyle magazine, Jez Davison is a business writer for the Evening Gazette in Teesside »
Ian Brown, Northumberland farmer and businessman writes about the agricultural industry »
Accessibilty Champion Steve Wilkinson on the importance of inclusion »
Shared Interest Staff at Newcastle's fair trade firm blog on their latest international missions »
PR man David Honeywell on raising your profile in the right places »
Marion Bernard is from NorthStar Equity Investors »
Caroline Theobald is the Managing Director of Bridge Club Ltd »
John Barton of Renew, on the region's low carbon and sustainable energy agenda »
Paul Williamson is Senior Partner at Deloitte »
Stephen Hall is Tax Partner at Deloitte »The recent news that a high speed rail link will not becoming via the North-east was a bitter blow to local industry.
A 200mph service that could cut journey times to London and Scotland would have enhanced the attractiveness of doing business on Teesside.
The area has benefited from inward investment, with 45 overseas businesses relocating to the North-east or deciding to stay put in the 12 months to April - not bad going in the worst recession in recent memory.
But the region is keen to build further on this momentum, with One North East spending another £2.275m on persuading other firms to set up a base here.
Investors have cited a relatively uncluttered transport infrastructure, with quick links to main arterial routes, as one of Teesside industry's main selling points.
And a high speed rail link would have highlighted this in bold.
Business leaders have vowed to fight Network Rail's plans - at this stage it's a mere proposal which requires Government endorsement before the first track is laid.
But the infrastructure owner is confident that no reversal will take place because, it claims, the chosen route offers the best return on investment.
This will be scant consolation to recession-hit Teesside firms looking for competitive leverage in tough trading conditions.
But even if High Speed 2 bypasses the region, local lobbyists should keep fighting for Government funding that could secure vital upgrades on a smaller scale.
Improvements to the A19/A174 junction, the dualling of the A66 west of Darlington and further investment in freight capacity on the rail route from Teesport to the East Coast mainline would all boost the region.
Making these three improvements will cost an eight-figure sum - a drop in the ocean compared with the £34bn earmarked for High Speed 2.
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