A FURIOUS row erupted at the CBI conference over claims that the South East is grimmer than the North West

South East business leaders were incensed by a North West Development Agency newspaper headlined: "It's grim down south."

It included a photograph of commuters crammed into a tube train with the caption "Officially too hot to transport cattle."

On another page about the best locations for call centres a key target for Locate In Kent the headline screamed: "North West best South East worst."

Nigel Bourne, CBI's regional chief accused the agency of "cheap points scoring".

"A healthy rivalry is fine but what I don't think helps is when one region starts slagging off another. That doesn't achieve anything at all.

"The South East has some enormous assets and qualities that make it a very popular place for companies to settle and I am sure that they will continue to do that."

The North West Development Agency defended the remarks, saying they were "cheeky" and "tongue in cheek".

Marketing director Peter Mearns said: "There is more to life than London and the South East and there is no better time to promote that message than while the CBI is here in Manchester."