To consider and agree the draft economic development strategy for recommendation to Council.

The cabinet member for economy and corporate services introduced the report. He thanked all who had contributed and given feedback on the strategy. He reported that consultation had taken place in all the market towns apart from Kington and with key local partners. The general overview and scrutiny committee had commented on the strategy and a summary of its recommendations was included as an appendix to the report. The cabinet member stressed that engagement with partners would continue after the adoption of the strategy.

The cabinet member explained that the strategy was composed of two parts, the economic vision and the pitchbook. He stated that the strategy was deliberately aspirational and recognised the need to attract private sector investment.

The chief executive reported that he had regular meetings with major employers in the county. He stated that during a recent meeting with one such company the desire for a clear vision for Herefordshire had been clearly expressed. Companies wanted to see opportunities for investment identified and schemes promoted to attract people to live and work in Herefordshire.

The cabinet member for economy and corporate services highlighted a number of projects that the council had already supported and the impact they had had. He stated that the list of projects in the strategy would change and develop over time. The strategy was aspirational and it had to be recognised that some projects might not ultimately be delivered.

The economic development manager explained that the proposed strategy had built on the previous iteration covering the period 2011 to 2016, with a shift to looking at opportunities for private sector investment. The new strategy would help the council to share and promote its priorities to key partners. There would be ongoing engagement with investors and the community. The economic development manager stated that all specific council funding referred to in the strategy had previously been before cabinet or full council.

A scrutiny chair commented that the council appeared to have largely withdrawn from the tourism sector in the county, leaving other agencies to take the lead. The economic development manager stated that the council continued to work with partners on developing the tourism sector, particularly on securing investment to deliver new elements.

A scrutiny chair asked what options were being considered for development of rail travel in the county, highlighting the level of service at Leominster station. The economic development manager stated that the council was working with partner agencies to deliver improvements to rail services such as investment in the car parking provision at Leominster station.

A scrutiny chair asked what would happen if the government did not deliver the required funding for the university project. The economic development manager responded that contingencies were being put in place. The chief executive added that he expected the position on the university to become clear in the near future and remained optimistic that the government funding would be secured.

A group leader stated that the council should give support to start-ups and small businesses as these were a critical element of the local economy. He also stated that the council should support businesses to make use of emerging technologies. The economic development manager confirmed that the council would be seeking to bring higher paid jobs to the area and that technology would be a key aspect of this.

The leader noted that publishing the strategy would not in of itself deliver any projects but that being able to demonstrate the council’s ambitions was important. The strategy would draw together the different strands of investment into a coherent way forward.

A cabinet support member asked why there had been less input and aspiration from some of the market towns. The economic development manager responded that it had been a difficult process to find suitable projects to include in the strategy. They needed to be of a scale and type to be attractive to outside investors. The council would continue to work with communities in and around the market towns to develop projects which could be added to the strategy in future.

A group leader commented that the strategy was focussed on Hereford City but that there had been a lack of involvement from Hereford City Council. He argued that some of the projects could be located in the market towns to spread development and that consultation with the market towns should have been started earlier in the process.

The cabinet member for economy and corporate services responded that the strategy had been widely supported and that engagement was continuing with communities in the market towns to develop suitable projects. He stated that some projects might not meet the criteria for inclusion in the economic developments strategy but would still be pursued.

A group leader asked what the main reasons were for companies not moving to Herefordshire. The economic development manager stated that Herefordshire had a good offer but needed to market this more. He noted that the main obstacle to relocation was the cost of new development. The leader commented that he was not aware of any one specific reason which deterred businesses from coming to the county but that Herefordshire had a reputation as a beautiful area to visit but not perhaps a place to do business.

Resolved that:

a)    the Herefordshire Economic Vision attached at appendix 1 be recommended to full Council for adoption as the county’s economic development strategy;

b)    delegated authority be sought from Council to make technical amendments to the strategy during the period 2017 to 2021 on factual matters such as: updating of statistics, replacing images, and reflection of projects approved by cabinet within each aim of the strategy.

c)    the investment pitch book contained at appendix 2 be approved; and

d)    authority be delegated to the economic development manager to make technical amendments to the investment pitch book on matters such as: typographical errors, replacement of images, statistical information, project information and programme timetable.