DEDICATED businesspeople are hosting a major event to make sure Cumbria gets its fair share of the Northern Powerhouse initiative.

Large-scale development has been earmarked for areas like Manchester and Liverpool, but Cumbria is yet to feature in the government's plans for a stronger northern economy.

Guest speakers, including Richard Rhodes, Cumbria's Police and Crime Commissioner, Rob Johnston MBE, Chief Executive of Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, and Graham Haywood,Director of Cumbria Local Economic Plan, are attending the event to 'make Cumbria's voice heard'.

The Gazette spoke to Roger Davies, a member of the Cumbrian branch of the Institute of Directors, who said: "We're concerned that Cumbria will be forgotten and the whole idea is to should shout about the area and make Cumbria's voice heard so that we get a fair share of what's going around. We should shout about it because nobody else will."

According to Mr Davies, Cumbria has so much going for it in a business sense that it would be stupid not to be offered a chunk of the Northern Powerhouse's funding.

He said: "If you add up all the development going on across the county it's much more than the cross rail project in London. There's the nuclear industry, BAE Systems, GSK in Ulverston. There's tonnes of stuff going on and we need the skills and infrastructure to support it."

According to Mr Davies, 65, from Kendal, it is a matter of changing outsiders' perceptions of the area.

"We want to make sure people don't just see us as a load of Herdwick sheep farmers," he said.

"I'm not knocking them, they generate massive business, but there's a lot of other things going on too. The Chinese delegates visiting the country at the moment are bringing money for nuclear power but we're way ahead of the nuclear game here."

After the key speakers have delivered their speeches there will be a question and answer session involving all audience members, something Mr Davis hopes will be 'a bit provocative'.

A buffet lunch will follow at the event, which is scheduled to take place between 9.30am and 2pm at Carlisle Racecourse on Friday, November 13.

Tickets cost £10.

For more information visit www.iod.com/connecting/events/2015/november/cumbria-and-the-northern-powerhouse-n25111