West Midlands LEPs – The uncertain picture
THE future direction of economic development in the West Midlands was unclear today after the Government’s announcement that it is to proceed with Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) bids for the Birmingham and Coventry Chamber groups but not from the Black Country.
The Birmingham Chamber Group, which also takes in Solihull, Cannock, Lichfield, Tamworth and Burton-upon-Trent, together with its sister chamber in Coventry and Warwickshire were both delighted but said the hard work to replace the system of regional development agencies began now.
What the future holds for the four boroughs of the Black Country is unclear. Despite Business Secretary Vince Cable not announcing the area as one of the 24 LEPs to proceed, organisers of the bid have refused to accept the proposal is dead and buried.
In fact, in a joint statement by the four Black Country borough councils- Walsall, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Dudley – said those responsible for the area’s bid would be renegotiating with Ministers and they were confident the submission would get the go ahead.
The formation of a Black Country LEP has the support of the four councils, more than 100 strategic businesses and the skills, education and transport sectors.
The statement said: “Although approval has not been released in today’s (Thursday) Government announcement, the Black Country LEP is confident that it will receive approval in the next few weeks. Arrangements have been made for discussions with Government officials in the next two weeks.
“In the meantime, all will continue to work to the principles of the Local Enterprise Partnership to further the region’s economic prospects.”
In his statement to the Commons, Mr Cable announced the Government intended to abolish the nine regional development agencies in England, and invited business leaders to create LEPs that cover natural local economies. The new bodies will have responsibility for encouraging economic development and enterprise, and for improving skills in their local economy.
Jerry Blackett, chief executive of the Birmingham Chamber Group, said: “We are delighted by today’s decision. But this is the beginning and our eyes must remain firmly on the prize of making this LEP the easiest place in Europe in which to set up and run a business.
“The extensive consultation with business means we have a strong foundation. We must now deliver. We will quickly appoint the shadow board and prepare for business elections in the New Year.
“We are developing processes and protocols to make this a robust decision-making body which can deliver on our ambitious proposals. We will drive key investment in infrastructure and seek to secure the powers and resources from central Government needed to support our LEP.”
Jackie Hendley, chair of Birmingham Forward and tax partner at KPMG, said Mr Cable’s approval of the Birmingham bid was testament to the hard work put in by all involved.
“The business community, in partnership with the public sector, needs to continue to support the LEP as we move to the next stage in the process. By working collaboratively together we can all play a part and help shape the future of the region,” she said.
Commenting on the approval of the Coventry and Warwickshire LEP, Brian Woods-Scawen, chairman of CSWP – one of the partners behind the LEP proposal, said: “We always felt that Coventry and Warwickshire was a very good fit for an LEP and the history of all parties working effectively together undoubtedly helped.
“There has been very good buy-in from everyone and that helped us to formulate a very strong proposal for Coventry and Warwickshire.”
