Midlands Business Insider profiles Midlands devolution

Devolution Leicestershire supporters have contributed to an in-depth look at Midlands Devo for the latest edition of Business Insider magazine.

Kevin Harris, Chair of East Midlands Chamber, and Dr Nik Kotecha OBE DL, founder of Randal Sun Capital, both contributed to the 3-page feature.

Both organisations are backers of the Devolution Leicestershire campaign.

Insider goes out across the Midlands region, with 41,000 total regular readers - about two-thirds of them at a senior level.

The theme of the October issue is the major economic, political and business challenges shaping the region - as well as the companies and entrepreneurs driving growth. 

A key focus is Devolution, with business leaders from both East and West Midlands calling for wider regional powers and greater access to funding.

Among them is Mr Harris, who argues that Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland are being left behind by England’s uneven Devolution map. 

The former LLEP Chair adds that it is increasingly frustrating to see neighbouring areas with mayoral combined authorities gaining powers and investment while LLR remains outside that system - despite being the East Midlands’ largest economy and having a particularly strong SME base.

“Every day there are announcements about new devolved powers and funding,” he said.

“The concern is when we (Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland) do get a combined authority and a mayor, it will take us a long time to catch up.

“It grates me massively that there’s an East Midlands combined authority and Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland are not part of it.

“But we need to accept we’re not going to be part of it and show why it’s important we have a clear timetable for devolution.

“Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland is the largest economy in the East Midlands and has more SMEs than Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Derby and Derbyshire.”

Mr Harris noted that there are different tiers of combined authorities.

“We need a timescale about what funding and powers Leicester and Leicestershire gets - and when,” he said.

Government has previously set a deadline of of 2027 for the introduction of strategic authorities, while Prime Minister Andy Burnham has indicated he would like Devo in LLR "as soon as possible".

LLR council leaders have recently written to Government requesting permission to move towards a regional Mayor but a timeline has yet to be set.

Dr Kotecha made the case for acting collectively and moving at pace on Devolution in LLR.

“It’s clear that having an elected ambassador for LLR - one with a direct line into Downing Street - is key,” he told Insider.

“Mr Burnham’s own time as Mayor of Greater Manchester shows the value of this, but so does the success of other influential mayoral leaders, such as Andy Street and Ben Houchen in the West Midlands and Teesside respectively.

“We only have to look at the Prime Minister's actions this summer - in calling Mayors to Number 10 North within days of taking office - to see why having a Mayor is essential.”

• You can read the article in full in the October edition of Midlands Business Insider here.