Hundreds of Bradford business people have booked to hear a top banker's view of the state of British industry at a major event in the city.

Some 800 firms have asked for tickets to hear The Bradford Lecture in St George's Hall next Tuesday given by Sir Brian Pitman, chairman of the Lloyds TSB group.

The event, which starts at 6.30pm, has been organised by Bradford Chamber of Commerce and the Chartered Institute of Bankers.

Sir Brian's theme is 'Where are we going?'. He will be looking at lessons learned by the financial services industry, including the challenge of applying new technology, deregulation and the entry of new competitors.

He will spend time during the day visiting Lloyds TSB branches in the area and talking to corporate customers.

He will be finding out how local textile firms are coping with the strong pound and what they expect to come from the forthcoming Budget.

Sir Brian, who chairs one of the world's four largest banks and one of Britain's five largest companies, was recently voted the most admired leader of industry in a poll.

The event is one of the biggest staged by the Chamber and is part of its efforts to raise its profile in the district.

The Chamber is trying to recruit since the number fell to 1,038 compared with more than 1,500 five years ago.

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