Team Birmingham has encouraging meeting with PM
THE ‘Team Birmingham’ delegation’s meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday has been hailed as successful.
Jerry Blackett, chief executive of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce Group (BCCG), and Andy Street, chair of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP), joined MPs and councillors in the meeting which was intended to discuss the city’s economic plans and how they are to be funded.
Blackett said the Prime Minister was impressed by with the ability of the city’s political parties and business leaders to speak with one voice.
He said: “Mr Cameron was highly impressed to see business, councillors and MPs all with a united agenda. All credit to Sir Albert Bore, the city council leader, and MP Jack Dromey for organising this visit. We impressed the Prime Minister with our ideas and will now move quickly to worked-up plans.”
In a statement, the group said: “The Prime Minister was interested in our ideas to encourage economic growth through the council, businesses and other partners continuing to work together.
“We will now be deepening the dialogue with government around the proposals we’ve made, particularly with Greg Clark, the minister for cities.
“In particular we welcomed the Prime Minister’s encouragement for an integrated transport plan for an area extending beyond the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership.
“We also had an extremely good response to our proposition that Birmingham is perfectly placed to pioneer radical new ways of delivering business support through new partnership arrangements.
“The Prime Minister has indicated that we should pursue this with Sir Michael Heseltine, who is conducting a review of business support services and is due to report in October.”
Unsurprisingly, Birmingham Airport – and the part it plays in the Government’s future aviation policy thinking – was also discussed.
The statement said: “He confirmed that Birmingham will be part of the upcoming airports review.”
