I think we have a huge opportunity to bring more powers and deliver more investment to the East Midlands through the East Midlands Mayoral Combined Authority and if we are serious about levelling up our region, then we need to grasp this opportunity with both hands.
The Authority would be one of the largest Combined Authorities in the country with a population over 2 million and an economic output of over £42.9billion GVA (Gross Value Added), but currently the East Midlands receives the lowest per-head investment of any area in England at £12,113 (10% below the UK average) in comparison to £15,490 in London (15% higher than the UK average).
Both private and public sector investment is eluding the East Midlands and heading to Teesside, the West Midlands, South Yorkshire and elsewhere. We’re missing out because it is more complicated to do large scale investment in our region than it is in the others. That's simply because if a business wants to invest in our region, they usually need to speak to at least one district council, a county council, the local enterprise partnership, the local MP, the Chamber of Commerce. And as you are aware all of them control different parts of the process, making any investment time consuming and cumbersome. If you want to invest in Teesside or Birmingham, you simply phone the Mayor.
We don’t have that in the East Midlands, and I think it is holding us back. We have so much potential; with our fantastic transport links, our manufacturing heritage, strong universities, and energy heritage which offer so many opportunities in our race to Net Zero. We are the heart of the country, and should be top of any investor’s list of sites. And yet we have barely scratched the surface of the high-skilled high-wage jobs we can deliver locally.
An East Midlands Mayor would provide a unified approach to lobbying Government on behalf of the region due to their ability to bring together local MPs, third-party organisations, and the private sector to help deliver investment and jobs.
And bringing in a devolution deal will bring more money and powers to local leaders. We’ll have more control locally in areas such as education and skills, public transport, infrastructure, and employment. And no local authority would lose jobs or powers through the creation of the Mayoral Combined Authority.
A Mayor Authority would present a united and coherent plan to deal with the unique challenges and diverse inequalities in the East Midlands that require localised solutions not a one-size fits all approach from Whitehall.
The region has already demonstrated how successful it can be when it works together with the announcement of the East Midlands Freeport - one of 8 new freeports in the UK. The Freeport based at East Midlands Airport with sites at Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station and South Derbyshire will be the best-connected and greenest freeport in the county, generating up to 60,000 jobs and turbocharging the regional economy.
But these successes need to be the rule rather than the exception and we need a permanent approach to investment and jobs, alongside a long-term plan to ensure our cities and towns are delivering growth and prosperity for decades to come.
We have been competing against neighbouring regions with one hand tied behind our back for too long. Our region needs a coherent strategy on housing and regeneration, transport and infrastructure, skills and education, and the economy, which can only be provided by an East Midlands Mayor.
It is time to return powers to local leaders and unleash the economic powerhouse that is the East Midlands.
