To consider the call-in of the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership Joint Executive Committee decision.

The Chairman welcomed attendees and invited the Assistant Director, Governance to outline the circumstances of this call-in.  The principal points included:

1.       The call-in related to a decision about the Marches Enterprise Zone taken by the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Joint Executive Committee (JEC) at its meeting on 11 December 2014.

2.       The JEC was a decision-making body recognised by law; Cabinet had approved the establishment of a joint committee to exercise executive functions in relation to the Marches LEP on 31 July 2014.  Councillor AW Johnson was Herefordshire Council’s representative on the JEC and was representing the decision-making body at this meeting.

3.       The call-in primarily related to the non-listing of the ‘Hereford Enterprise Zone, Accelerating Delivery: Investment Strategy’ prepared by DTZ (the DTZ report) on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).  Following the receipt of the call-in notice, the Assistant Director, Governance had circulated an email to committee members explaining that, although not required legally or by the Constitution (due to the exempt information contained in the report), a better approach would have been to have listed the DTZ report as a background paper given that this had been relied upon in the preparation of the JEC report.  The Assistant Director, Governance had provided the document, with Appendix C removed, to committee members and it had been published on the council’s website.  Appendix C, with appropriate redactions, was included within Supplement 1 to the agenda.

4.       The call-in notice stated that ‘Further concerns regarding the substance of the decision and the options considered cannot be ruled out at this stage’.  It was noted that the JEC report was in the public domain prior to call-in and the committee should focus on new issues that came to light with the publication of the DTZ report.

The Chairman invited the Assistant Director Place Based Commissioning to comment on the briefing note included in Supplement 1 to the agenda ‘Policy background regarding infrastructure to support the development of the Hereford Enterprise Zone’.  Attention was drawn to the following:

a.       The decision of the JEC ‘allocates future business rate income to support the development of the Hereford Enterprise Zone (HEZ) by providing funding for such infrastructure as may be required to enable the HEZ to be completed.  However, this decision does not pre-determine what infrastructure (if any) may be required nor pre-empt decisions that would need to be taken locally in the future regarding the details of what infrastructure should be provided and where.’

b.       The remainder of the briefing note provided background on: the purpose of the Local Development Order (LDO); the consultation undertaken on the LDO, including with the Highways Agency; the recognised need for further infrastructure investment to enable the full development of the HEZ; the strategic policy context, including the draft Local Development Framework (LDF); and the timetable for the LDF examination process.

Committee members that submitted the call-in notice made a number of comments, including:

i.        Investment was not being challenged  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45

To consider the outcome of a review of options and agree mechanisms for accelerating delivery of the enterprise zone.

Members were presented with a report asking them to consider the outcome of a review of options and agree mechanisms for accelerating delivery of the enterprise zone.

The Chairman of the Local Enterprise Partnership confirmed the report was a true and fair reflection of the Local Enterprise Partnership Board meeting.

RESOLVED:  That the Joint Committee

(a)        approve Scenario 3, as outlined in this report, as the investment approach to take, with an amendment to provide £100k a year from the additional business rates to help meet LEP running costs from 2016/17 onwards for the duration of the model;

(b)       agree business rates generated by the enterprise zone be used to fund the additional investment required;

(c)        recognise that the enterprise zone funding stream is one of the potential sources for the Wye river crossing, but that this funding need not be quantified at this time; and

(d)       ask Herefordshire Council to keep the Marches LEP board informed of progress with the implementation of the Herefordshire Local Development Framework.