Agenda item

(To receive a report from Justin Brown, Enterprise Commissioner, which describes the work of the Midlands Engine partnership and considers how Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) should engage with the partnership)

It was reported that the Midlands Engine was a partnership which was seeking to promote growth across the whole of the East and West Midlands.  It was supported by government and was likely that significant resources for growth would be routed through the partnership.  The report presented to the Committee described the work of the Midlands Engine Partnership and considered how Lincolnshire County Council should engage with the partnership.

Members were guided through the report and provided with the opportunity to ask questions to the officers present in relation to information contained within the report and some of the points raised during discussion included the following:

·         A lot of work had been done in relation to transport priorities which were contained in a document called 'Midlands Connect'

·         There was a challenge to ensure that the people who made decisions knew that Lincolnshire was an important area and that there were schemes which were ready to be implemented when funding became available.

·         It was highlighted that the improvements to the Newark bypass would not be a scheme in Lincolnshire, but it would be of benefit to the county as it was one of the main gateways to Lincolnshire.

·         A lot of work had been done to make sure that the rail connections which ran east to west were improved.  It was reported that the increase in fast trains on the East Coast Mainline was welcome because it would improve connections with London, but that the increase would make it more difficult for East/West trains to cross the East Coast Mainline.

·         The challenge was not just about showing why Lincolnshire needed funding for certain schemes, but also to demonstrate why what would be proposed would also be important for the Midlands area.

·         The Midlands engine needed to understand the importance of Lincolnshire as well as trusting the authorities to deliver the projects if funding was awarded.

·         It was queried whether there were any plans to improve the A17 as the condition of the road could be a barrier to people travelling through Lincolnshire, and it was suggested whether this could be included as a priority.

·         Caution was advised to stop this from becoming a 'shopping list' of improvements that councillors would like to see.  However, it was noted that the A17 was one of those roads which was important to freight transport.  It was queried whether this would be more of a national project in terms of moving freight from Lowestoft to the North West.

·         It was also noted that some roads to Skegness were in a poor condition and it was queried if there were plans to improve them up to the M180.  Members were advised that making a case for Skegness to the Midlands Engine should be fairly easy because of the traditional relationship between the east coast resorts and the industrial midlands cities, but Midlands Engine funding would only be available of a clear case could be made for how investment would have an impact on the growth of the Midlands.  It was noted that officers would be working with the Greater Lincolnshire LEP to help it refresh the transport strategy to include some of these points.

·         It was commented that the report referred to consideration being given to the Government Art Collection being showcased in Birmingham, however, it was felt that there was already a lot of cultural exhibits in Birmingham and this was something that would of more benefit to Lincolnshire.

·         It was important to ensure that when the authority presented itself it did so with a narrative of what benefit Lincolnshire brought to the midlands.  Areas which were properly engaging with this partnership were Nottingham City, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

·         The government had asked the Midlands Engine to look at skills, however, officers believed this was more of a national issue, such as the design of apprenticeships.

·         It was commented that a task and finish group had taken place a number of years earlier which had looked at the Impact of Transportation on Maximising Economic Growth (ITMEG).  It was noted that this work had produced some very clear action plan activity and had influenced the development of other schemes.  Members were advised that the final report produced as part of the Task and Finish group would be circulated to the Committee for information.

·         One member commented that that they strongly supported this Partnership, as nationally they had been very successful at getting additional funding, and it was felt that if this authority was not involved in this one, then Lincolnshire would lose out.  It was commented that this should be supported and that members and officers do everything they can to help Lincolnshire to be pro-active in obtaining additional funding.

·         It was important that this did not become an urban verses rural battle.

·         The benefits of electrifying the joint avoiding line were discussed and it was highlighted that there was the potential for massive savings to operators if the line was electrified as trains would no longer need to switch back to diesel power.

RESOLVED

1.    That the ongoing development of the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership and its use of the Strategic Economic Plan to attract resources into Lincolnshire be supported.

2.    That the priorities identified through the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership's analysis be supported, as well as the additional priorities highlighted by the Committee including improvements to the A17, Skegness and a link to the coastal highway and the potential for electrification of the joint line between Peterborough, Lincoln and Doncaster.

3.    That officers be tasked with producing a strong overall narrative for engaging with Midlands Engine along with specific project cases which articulated LCC's priorities to the Midlands Engine Partnership.