AWM pledges to contiune managing £400m of assets

ADVANTAGE West Midlands has pledged to continue managing the £400m portfolio of assets currently under its control until the agency closes in a year’s time.

Speaking at the last ever AWM annual general meeting, chief executive Mick Laverty said the agency was determined to continue with its work right up until the last minute.

Yesterday’s meeting was a much subdued event compared with AGMs of the past. Over the years, the agency has held events at venues such as the ICC in Birmingham where hundreds of people have attended.

However, yesterday’s meeting was staged at the agency’s offices in Priestley Wharf in Birmingham with barely two dozen people in attendance.

The sombre mood of the meeting was in keeping with the death knell which has now been sounded for the agency following the coalition Government’s decision to axe regional development agencies and replace them with a system of Local Enterprise Partnerships.

Mr Laverty said: “It’s been a difficult year but there have been a number of successes of which we’re very pleased. Notably, the agreement with aerospace firm Moog to relocate to the i54 site outside Wolverhampton.

“This has been one of the sites we have been keen to develop over the years and it is good to see that work now paying off.”

He said the agency was determined to leave a legacy of which the region could be proud and he singled out projects such as New Street Station, the new Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Fort Dunlop and Ansty Park which would leave a lasting mark on their areas.

He also said the agency had a number of other achievements of which it could be proud. These included the consistently high rating of the agency by independent analysts for its efficiency and value for money and its enviable record of generating £8.14 of investment for every £1 spent by it.

Other achievements during its 10-year lifespan included the support given to the region’s motor industry following the collapse of MG Rover and the recent recession when emergency transition loans were offered to firms struggling to survive.

Mr Laverty said the agency had been placed in a difficult situation whereby it had to maintain its operations while at the same time gearing down for closure in March 2012.

“It is almost impossible to close down and keep going at the same time but that’s what we are trying to do,” he said.

“Ultimately, we will be judged on how effectively we close down the organisation. We currently have a coalition of people working on strategic issues.”