Alan Willett retires as chair of SEEDA at around the time you will receive this copy of RDA News. He talks to Ian Cundell about his - and SEEDA's - first four years.
The first problem was that the south east was run as an annex of London. The second was that a group of councils from Milton Keynes to Margate, Reading to Ramsgate, were used to running there own affairs - except where Whitehall did it for them as an afterthought of London.
The SEEDA area is not - in cultural terms - logical. Geographers call it Balkanisation. Alan Willetts challenge was to give the south east a common cause. But he is quick to emphasise that he had no intention of trying to give it a common culture.
The south east economy was worth �108bn when SEEDA was founded and is now worth somewhere in the region of �140bn. If it were a nation it would be the eighth or ninth largest in Europe. "The biggest achievement is to create a region with its own sense of purpose."
Not that it was easy. The counties were - quite understandably, says Willett - suspicious. There had been no equivalent of SEEDA. What was this upstart? "That has been turned around," says Willett. The secret he says is that he "wasn't parking tanks on their lawns," but instead sold a concept of partnership. Gradually SEEDA has become a single voice of the south east. Common cause was recognised because many south east centres have common problems - typically, skills and training, infrastructure provision and - increasingly, throughout the region - affordable housing.
"Seeda will take a cause and go into government and make sure it is understood," says Willett. Instead of multiple, municipal or county voices, a single regional voice gives coherence.
And it matters.
"This region is absolutely the locomotive of this country," says Willett, "Hampshire alone is about the equivalent to the North East in terms of its economy." The problem was that national government did not appreciate this concept. Willett notes Ken Livingstone's claim that London is an �11bn net contributor to the economy. "The south east," points out Willett, "is a �20bn net contributor."
He says the SEEDA argument is that "We are delighted to fund the country, but let's make sure we go on doing it. That could not be argued without an accepted voice to argue it."
He uses the analogy of a large private company from which shareholders have been taking too much in dividends. "We've got to invest more, but we still want to pay dividends."
As he got to know the region it became clear that the wealth was heavily concentrated to the south and west of London - and that the area close to the airports was in danger of overheating. Yet he realised that he could not 'close' the Thames Valley. The key is to create genuine alternatives such as the Solent, Milton Keynes and the Thames Gateway.
Part of the thinking behind infrastructure improvements is to make more of the region easily accessible to the airports - an absolutely key factor for many south east-based businesses.
But, although good at bringing in businesses, the south east has been less effective at creating its own. "25% of the UK R&D spend is in the south east," says Willett, "But where are the companies? That's where the concept of the enterprise hubs came from."
The 12 hubs - 30 are planned - centre around universities and research centres "The mother lodes of knowledge," says Willett - with around 250,000 sq ft of incubation space.
But the south east is not entirely about wealth. Around its coast, from Margate to Southampton is a ribbon of deprivation and has around 2m people - a quarter of the population. Hastings is juts 17 miles from Tunbridge Wells, but is cut off, with its back to the sea and has very poor communications.
Both the physical infrastructure and information technology are being deployed to bring economic growth to the coastal towns and tie the depreived areas into the wealthy areas..
"It's not a done deal," says Willett, "There's still a lot to do. But at least we've got it moving."
Willett expects little interest in the new Regions Bill devolution proposals - "The south east doesn't have the slightest interest" - he says, adding "SEEDA must get on with the job."
Then he concludes that from his perspective: "It doesn't matter whether [assemblies] are directly elected or indirectly elected. I am accountable to them."
© Ian Cundell, 2004