Responding to the Government’s Strengthened Local
Enterprise Partnerships report, which sets out
changes to LEPs, the local growth bodies that oversee significant
economic development funding across England, Mike Spicer, BCC
Director of Research and Economics, said:
“Business will welcome the fact that the government’s review of
Local Enterprise Partnerships clarifies what LEPs are there to do
– and makes the way they are run more transparent.
“Companies have long wanted LEPs to have clearer structures and
greater accountability to the local private sector. Properly seen
through, a number of the decisions made by ministers could help
to improve the relationship between local firms and the
partnerships that are tasked with prioritising how public money
is invested in the local economy.
“Success, for local business communities, will be measured by
whether companies feel that they have a strong voice in setting
long-term strategy for their area, a say in prioritising
resources, and ultimately, whether LEPs deliver tangible
improvements to the local business environment. They will also
want to be sure that LEPs are truly strategic in their approach –
and avoid crowding out private sector activity, which has been a
significant problem in some areas in the past.
“At their core, LEPs exist to ensure that the public and private
sectors come together to develop a long-term plan, allocate
funding, and get the fundamentals right for local businesses to
grow. They must not be distracted from this core purpose, either
by local politics or by Whitehall process overload.”
