General Election 2015: LEP chair welcomes jobs pledge
A PLEDGE by the Conservatives to expand Birmingham’s city centre Enterprise Zone has been welcomed by the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership.
Andy Street, chair of the LEP, said the measures outlined by George Osborne during his visit to the city, promised to drive both job creation and investment.
Mr Osborne said up to 160,000 new jobs could be created in the region by extending the zone to cover all of the Curzon Street regeneration masterplan area. This would have the added benefit of extending the period over which business rates are retained locally.
The Tories said this would allow the LEP to fund major transport improvements in the city, and regenerate the area around the new station planned for HS2.
Street said: “We welcome the commitment set out in the Chancellor’s speech that a future Conservative Government would extend both the geography of our city centre Enterprise Zone so that it covers the whole of the regeneration area around Curzon Station and also the duration of the zone.
“This announcement would support the Greater Birmingham & Solihull LEP to fund a package of targeted local measures to truly maximise the growth potential around the station, drive regional productivity and in turn the net gain to UK PLC.”
He said the LEP was already pioneering the use of retained business rates to stimulate development in the city centre to great effect. Its £275m Enterprise Zone Investment Plan, funded by borrowing undertaken by Birmingham City Council against future business rate uplift, has also seen the start of works on the £500m redevelopment of Paradise Circus.
It is hoped this will ultimately deliver more than 6,000 jobs, while the £37.95m extension of the Midland Metro tram system and the £30m city centre public realm improvement programme will also be significant developments.
“We hope that regardless of the outcome of the General Election, the new Government will support the extension of our Enterprise Zone in both time and geography, helping us to create an additional 36,000 jobs in the Curzon area and generate an additional £1.4bn GVA per annum for the local economy,” Street added.
