MINUTES OF THE BOARD MEETING HELD ON 15 FEBRUARY 2007 AT
RENAISSANCE HOUSE, WARRINGTON
Present:
Bryan Gray (Chairman)
David Brockbank
Joe Dwek
Sir Martin Harris
Peter Hensman
Dave McCall
John Merry
Marie Rimmer
Anil Ruia
Brenda Smith
Also Present:
Steven Broomhead, Chief Executive
Bernice Law, Secretary
Alison Richardson, (87/04, 87/10)
Simon Nokes (87/04, 87/08)
Peter White (87/00, 87/04,87/05, 87/07)
Mark Hughes (87/04,87/06)
Keith Barnes, GONW
Phil Robinson, NWRA
87/00 PRESENTATION: NATURAL ENGLAND
Richard Leaf, Peter Allen and Pam Warhurst provided a
presentation on Natural England.
The Board was advised of the organisation’s vision, which was to
conserve and enhance the natural environment, for its intrinsic
value, the well-being and enjoyment of people, and the economic
prosperity that it brings.
The Board noted that Natural England had four strategic
outcomes:
- A healthy natural environment
- Enjoyment of the natural environment
- Sustainable use of the natural environment
- A secure environmental future
Its immediate priorities were as follows:
- Delivery of Environmental Stewardship.
- SSSI and Farmland Bird PSAs.
- Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Park Boundary
review.
- Consult on the Liverpool Bay proposed Marine SPA.
- Continue the delivery of the Pennine Bridleway National
Trail
- Lead the delivery of the Natural Economy NW programme.
- Continue support for the Green Infrastructure Agenda.
- Develop Natural England’s contribution to the Regional Climate
Change Action Plan.
- Increase active volunteering for the natural environment.
The Board also noted that Natural England had four
campaigns:
Marine
To set up a network of marine protected areas to help safeguard the
marine environment.
Health and the Environment
To champion preventative health solutions in the natural
environment.
Sustainable Land Management
To engage with the public to help them understand land management,
and also to involve them in shaping and strengthening the wide
range of benefits they receive from their investment in this
area.
Climate Change
To lead a new approach to responding to climate change that
emphasises reducing fragmentation and creating new connections for
wildlife across the landscape.
The Board was reminded of Natural England’s contribution to
delivering Regional Economic Strategy, which centre around the
following RES objectives:
- Action 24 - Climate Change Action Plan - lead on impacts on the
landscape, habitats and species.
- Action 113 - Economic benefits of the natural environment -
lead through Natural Economy Northwest.
- Action 118 – Sustainable farming and food production -
delivering Environmental Stewardship; advice and training to
farmers; climate change pilot in Cumbria High Fells.
- Actions 116 and 119 – Regional Parks and green space -
developing the green infrastructure agenda.
87/01 INTRODUCTION AND APOLOGIES FOR
ABSENCE
Apologies were received from Pauleen Lane, John Moverley, Vanda
Murray, Mike Storey and Maureen Williams.
87/02 MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 18 JANUARY
2007 AND MATTERS ARISING
The minutes were approved as a correct record.
87/03 ACTION POINTS FROM PREVIOUS
MEETINGS
The Board noted the progress made on the action points from the
previous meetings.
The Internationalisation Strategy would be presented to the
April 2007 Board meeting.
87/04 STRATEGIC INVESTMENT PLAN 2007/08 TO
2009/10
The Board was reminded that it had received an interim Strategic
Investment Plan (SIP) at its meeting on 14 December 2006, which had
outlined the overall structure and direction of the Agency’s
investment programme for the three year period 2007/08 to
2009/10. Since then considerable work had been undertaken to
ensure that the SIP and Sub Regional Action Plans aligned
effectively and to define more robustly the Agency’s expenditure
profile for the three financial years.
The Board was advised that the URC Business Plans had been
considered in detail by the Agency and levels of funding for the
planning period had been determined and subsequently incorporated
into the SIP. The SIP also included efficiency savings
planned for 2007/08 and this had been used as a baseline to
calculate efficiency savings for the rest of the SIP
period.
Key priorities included:
- The development of plans and determination of the next steps
for Merseyside.
- Development of plans with Blackpool URC and continuing work
with Manchester, following the recent Casino announcement.
- Continued development of Cumbria Vision and the masterplan for
the sub region.
The Board asked the Executive Director, Finance and Corporate
Resources to provide details in his regular report to the Board on
maintenance and Health and Safety costs in respect of Agency
properties.
The Board agreed that the SIP process was exemplary.
The Board approved the Agency’s budget for 2007/08, subject to
detailed amendments as outlined at the meeting.
The Board also noted the indicative allocations for 2008/09 to
2009/10.
87/05 KINGS WATERFRONT, LIVERPOOL
The Board was reminded that the Kings Waterfront development was
one of the top priorities of the Liverpool City Region and
Liverpool Vision. The objective was to create a world class visitor
destination that would comprise several interconnecting
projects. It was expected to take 10 to 15 years to
complete.
The Board was also reminded that the Convention Centre, Arena
and Exhibition Facility, car park and associated infrastructure was
being taking forward by a public sector partnership including
English Partnership, Liverpool City Council and the Agency.
The total project cost was £145.5m. In September 2004 the
NWDA Board had approved funding towards the project and
subsequently in January 2005, the Agency’s and EP’s contribution
had been approved by CPRG.
The Board noted that to date, the main building contract with
Bovis Lend Lease (BLL) had progressed well. The structural
steelwork on the Arena and Convention Facility was now 99% complete
and the multi storey car park was complete. Also from an
operational perspective, the project was progressing in line with
Business Plan projections.
A Special Purpose Vehicle known as Arena and Convention Centre
Liverpool (ACCL) had been established to operate the Facility.
Twenty seven firm and 19 provisional bookings had been made
so far for 2008.
The Board was advised that despite good progress there were a
number of issues in relation to cost increases that needed to be
addressed.
The Board noted that a Task and Finish Group of the Board had
visited the site on 2 February and had reviewed the additional
funding requirements in detail. The Task and Finish Group had
been impressed by the vision for the facility and was minded to
recommend that the NWDA Board approve additional funding as
outlined.
The Board approved NWDA investment into the project, subject to
the following conditions:
- Funding for the internal and external finishes is ring fenced
by the Agency and released, only if the Agency is satisfied that
negotiations with Bovis have been fully exhausted and that the
increased finishes are justified
- The increased contingency allowance is ring fenced and released
only with the Agency’s prior approval
- Liverpool City Council and English Partnerships confirming
their respective increased contributions
- CPRG approval.
In addition, the Task and Finish Group had advised that there
were significant lessons that could be drawn from this project for
the future development and appraisal of projects of this type,
including the requirement to anticipate changes in market
expectations that may affect the final specification and costs of
projects. The Board welcomed the fact that such lessons
would be considered and built into the Agency’s revised processes,
including the need to ensure that there was appropriate specialist
input to project development and contract documentation.
87/06 BUSINESS START UP AND SURVIVAL SUPPORT
PROGRAMME
Peter Hensman declared an interest in this item.
The Board was reminded that the RES confirmed that the region
needs another 38,000 businesses if it is to mirror national levels
of business density. Currently the North West ranks in the
bottom two thirds of the UK regions in respect of the key
indicators for start up and survival rates.
The Board noted that since September 2006 the Agency had been
developing, under the direction of the Enterprise, Innovation and
Skills Sub Committee, a programme of Business Start Up and Survival
support. The programme aims to provide an intensive service
for individuals who are considering starting a business but are in
underperforming groups and/ or areas.
The Board was advised that the core elements of the service
would include:
- Promotion activity to stimulate enquiries.
- Customer enquiry handling.
- Training Needs Analysis.
- Enterprise Skills Development.
- Intensive assistance in areas such as business planning,
marketing and raising finance to begin trading.
- Aftercare for up to 2 years after first trading.
The Board noted that the service would be targeted to take
account of all the relevant RES priorities, as well as ensuring
that duplication was avoided. The Board also noted that NW
Business Link and Sub Regional Partners had been fully involved in
the development of the project.
The Agency had followed the Official Journal of the European
Union (OJEU) procurement process to identify a suitable provider to
deliver the service. At the time of the Board meeting twelve
expressions of interest had been received from which five consortia
had been invited to tender. A consortium approach was
preferred to allow the range of providers to meet the different
needs of the client groups and geographic areas.
The Board noted that the key outputs for the project, which for
the three year period 2007/08 to 2009/10 amounted to 7,409 jobs
created and 4,359 other businesses created.
The Board endorsed the approach and framework for the Business
Start up and Survival Programme and approved NWDA investment in the
project. The Board also sanctioned the OJEU Procurement
Process to allow the Agency to award a contract to the successful
consortia as from April 2007.
87/07 ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
The Board noted that as part of the Agency’s approach to
continuously improve its environmental performance, and its duty
towards sustainable economic development, the Agency would seek to
attain formal ISO14004 environmental management accreditation by
November 2007. The Board was advised that as a step
towards this, the existing Environmental Policy had been revised
and a provisional Environmental Action Plan was being
developed.
The Board welcomed the fact that the revised Environmental
Policy outlined the Agency’s commitment to reduce its environmental
footprint, with an emphasis on reducing its contribution to climate
change, through ongoing measurement and continual improvement of
its environmental performance.
The Board approved the revised Environmental Policy.
87/08 NORTHERN WAY GROWTH STRATEGY
The Board noted that the Northern Way had recently completed
a significant review of future priorities, to improve the
efficiency of working arrangements and to sharpen its focus.
The review process had involved consultation with partners and
stakeholders including RDAs, City Regions, Central Government and
private sector partners. The Board was advised that
Government was keen to see a more prioritised approach, as
confirmed in correspondence from Yvette Cooper, Minister for
Housing and Planning to Neville Chamberlain, the Chairman of the
Northern Way.
The Board noted that following the review the agreed priority
areas were now Transport, Science and Innovation, and private
investment. A stronger focus would also be given to
research and analysis to reinforce and underpin the evidence base
for Northern Way thinking and the three aforementioned
priorities.
The Board was advised that through its reorganisation the
Agency had significantly increased its policy input to the Northern
Way. The Agency had led on the development of a strong CSR
2007 Northern Way submission; and the Agency was strengthening its
contribution to more efficient Northern Way working mechanisms,
including a new approach to a more focused and less bureaucratic
Secretariat.
The Board also noted that the Northern Way Steering Group
(attended by the three RDA Chairs) would adopt a more strategic
role; and that the Management Group (attended by the three RDA
Chief Executives) would now include representation from respective
City Regions.
87/09 CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S REPORT
Anil Ruia declared an interest in item a) the Museum of
Liverpool.
a) Museum of
Liverpool
The Board noted that on 25 January 2007 the Heritage Lottery Fund
had announced that it had approved a grant of £11.4m to National
Museums Liverpool (NML) towards the exhibition fit out of the £65m
Museum of Liverpool.
The Board was reminded that in April 2006, the Agency had
confirmed total funding of £32.7m towards the capital cost of the
project and in June 2006, £7.5m for Objective 1 was also
confirmed.
The Board was advised that the HLF grant was a Stage 1 approval,
which was still subject to NML satisfying conditions. However this
funding had been earmarked within HLF’s own budget. Whilst
the NWDA Board had approved a contingency plan to enable the fit
out, the Board noted that confirmation of the HLF grant would
enable the fit out to be accelerated, with the Museum fully open to
the public by 2010.
b) Proposed New Economic Development Company for
Liverpool
The Board noted that a formal consultation was being conducted by
Liverpool City Council in respect of its proposals to establish a
new Economic Development Company to bring together in one place the
skills and expertise of Liverpool Land Development Company,
Liverpool Vision and Business Liverpool. The Board was
advised that the aim was to simplify current arrangements, improve
the city’s capacity for delivering economic regeneration and enable
business leaders to engage actively and effectively to drive the
economic and physical regeneration of the City.
The Board noted that the Agency would provide a response to the
consultation, which would close on 28 February 2007.
c) Casino Advisory Panel Decision
The Chief Executive provided a short report on the implications of
the recommendations by the Casino Advisory Panel on the locations
for the regional casino and the eight large and eight small
casinos. The Board noted that the Panel had been particularly
impressed with Manchester’s proposal (the site for the regional
casino) and felt that it offered great promise and had a unique
formula to offer. The Panel had also stated that Manchester
had a catchment for a casino second only to that of London, and was
an area in need of regeneration at least as any others that it had
observed.
The Board agreed that this was good news for Manchester and for
the region. However there were clear implications on the economic
regeneration plans for Blackpool (which had also bid for regional
casino status). Blackpool as the priority location of a
regional casino was a key Transformational Action in the
RES.
The Board confirmed that the Agency would remain committed to
the ongoing regeneration of Blackpool and would continue to work
closely with RE Blackpool (the URC) and other partners in the town
to take forward its economic development and review plans
accordingly. A revised Strategy would need to be
developed.
The Board noted that the Agency would also work closely with
Manchester to support its plans for the Regional Casino, seeking to
ensure that benefits were fully maximised.
The Chief Executive provided feedback from a series of meetings
he had held with representatives from both Blackpool and Manchester
since the Panel’s announcement on 30 January.
d) City Development Companies – Draft
Guidance
The Board was advised that before Christmas, DCLG had published its
consultation on City Development Companies (CDCs) and that as part
of the consultation the Department was seeking views on the
developing guidance for CDCs, to which the RDAs had collectively
provided a response. In addition, the Board noted that the
RDAs had an early meeting scheduled with DCLG to discuss key issues
in detail.
e) Communities England
The Board noted
that on 17 January 2007, DCLG had announced the merger of English
Partnerships and the Housing Corporation to form Communities
England. The formation of the new agency was an outcome of
the Housing and Regeneration Review which was launched in April
2006. As well as bringing together the work of EP and the
Housing Corporation, it will take over DCLG’s delivery functions
for Decent Homes, Housing Growth, Housing PFI, Housing Market
Renewal and urban regeneration.
The Board was advised that as the new agency would be subject to
primary legislation (which was not included in the current
parliamentary timetable) it was unlikely that communities England
would be fully operational before 2009. EP and the Housing
Corporation would continue to run their existing programmes up
until that point. The Board also noted that based on existing
budgets, and subject to CSR2007 the new agency was expected to have
an estimated annual operating budget of around £4bn.
f) Government Named 40 “Respect” Areas
The Board noted that the Respect Action Plan was published in
January 2006 and set out the framework to promote respect and
tackle anti social behaviour. More recently, as part of this
agenda, Government had announced the first wave of “respect”
areas. This first wave consisted of 40 areas that had been
selected on the basis of their good, strong track record in
tackling anti social behaviour; and had signed up to a range of
activities to help to continue their good progress. The Board
noted that the North West areas were:
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
Blackpool Borough Council
Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council
Burnley Borough Council
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council Liverpool City
Council
Manchester City Council
Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council
Salford City Council
Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council
g) Quinn Glass Planning Application
The
Board noted that following a public inquiry the Secretary of State
had determined that the planning applications made by Quinn Glass
to Chester and Ellesmere Port and Neston Councils for a glass
container manufacturing, filling and distribution facility on the
former Ince B power station at Elton, Cheshire should be
refused. However, in 2003 Quinn secured planning permission
for a single furnace facility, towards which NWDA provided gap
funding of £4.9m. The Board was advised that the Secretary of
State’s decision related to a larger facility, incorporating a
second furnace, and which the Company had built and was operating
entirely at its own risk without planning consent.
The Secretary of State and the Planning Inspector recognised
that there were significant advantages in the Quinn operation at
Elton if an acceptable development could be secured; and the Board
noted that the Agency’s views on the economic benefits of the
project to the region appear to have been accepted. The Board also
noted that to date the Company had invested £200m in the site and
created in excess of 500 jobs.
The Board welcomed the news that rather than recommending
demolition, the Secretary of State had agreed that a fresh planning
application should be submitted. The Agency would continue to
work with the Company in respect of future actions.
h) Congestion Charging in Greater
Manchester
The Board was reminded that the Congestion
Transport Innovation Fund had been set up to support local plans
which combined some form of demand management such as road pricing
with better public transport. The Fund would come on stream
next year and was set to increase over time from £290m in 2008/09
to approximately £2.5bn by 2014/15.
The Board was also reminded that in July 2005 DfT asked local
authorities to bid for congestion TIF development funding to
support planning for local pilot road pricing projects. In
November 2005, Greater Manchester received £1.25m to carry out
“pump priming” development work and 12 months later they received a
further £1.95m to continue research work. It was expected that the
sub region would submit a bid in July 2007. Government had
confirmed that those authorities that supplied a business case for
the congestion management pilot before the July deadline would
received a decision from DfT before the end of the
year.
The Board was advised that if Greater Manchester was successful
it intended to use an element of the funding to pay for the
Metrolink Phase 3(b) extensions.
The Board noted that the Chief Executive had written to the
Chair of Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority to
request that the Agency is involved in discussions around any
emerging economic implications.
i) Delivering World Class Skills in a Demand Led
System
The Board noted that DfES and the Learning and Skills Council were
working together to determine how the recommendations from the FE
White Paper, Raising Skills, Improving Life Chances; and the Leitch
Review could be effectively implemented. Subsequently
on 5 January DfES and the LSC had jointly issued a consultation
document, which sought views on the proposed reforms required to
deliver the adult skills, employer sills and 14-19 challenges; and
in particular how a demand led FE system would work in
practice.
The Board was advised that the Agency, in its lead role, was
considering the consultation document as part of the wider debate
around the implications of Leitch. The consultation closes on
30 March 2007.
k) Westminster Debate on Regional Development
Agencies
The Board noted that on 7 February a debate took place in
Westminster Hall, as a result of an intervention by a South West
MP. The Agency provided evidence and support to the
debate. The Board received a copy of the opening speech
made by the Margaret Hodge, Minister of State for Industry and the
Regions, which helpfully set out the issues for RDAs both past and
future.
l) Local Enterprise Grant Initiative
(LEGI)
Board Members were reminded that the region had been successful in
bidding for LEGI funds in four localities.
The Board noted that St Helens had been successful in round 1;
and Blackpool, Liverpool/ Sefton and Pennine Lancashire had been
successful in round 2. (Pennine /Lancashire is a consortium
of East Lancashire Authorities, consisting of Blackburn with
Darwen, Hyndburn, Pendle and Lancashire County Council.)
Nationally in rounds 1 and 2 a total of £276.4m had been allocated,
of which the North West received £67.9m. (24.6% of the
total.)
The Board noted that the Agency’s role in the LEGI process had
evolved and for round 3 the Agency would obtain a place on the
Steering Group for all four successful locations, to enable the
Agency encourage projects to be developed in accordance with
regional enterprise priorities.
The Board noted that round 3 would complete in 2007/08, although
it was dependent on CSR2007. The Board welcomed the news that the
Agency, in partnership with GONW, would open dialogue with all
potential bidders for round 3.
The Board was advised that the Agency had secured places on the
respective steering groups for Blackpool and St Helens.
Meetings were also scheduled with Blackburn with Darwen and
Liverpool/ Sefton to discuss the Agency’s strategic
involvement.
m) Appointment of Chief Executive of the North West
Regional Assembly
The Board noted that Phil Robinson had been appointed as the NWRA
Chief Executive and offered congratulations.
n) North West Regional Assembly
Scrutiny
The Board was reminded that the Assembly continued to provide its
statutory scrutiny function regarding the Agency’s overall strategy
and performance; and was advised that in 2006/07 the process had
become more focused and constructive. The Board was advised
that the Agency had been discussing with the Assembly the
broadening of the required scrutiny process to include other public
bodies (LSC, Environment Agency etc) in order to focus on the
delivery of the RES not just the Agency.
In addition the RDA network was about to sign a protocol with
the Assemblies English Regions Network on scrutiny, which would
allow RDAs’ relationships with respective Assemblies to be
strengthened.
The Board noted that other discussions were also taking place
with regard to MPs involvement in the scrutiny process at national
or regional level. The Local Government White Paper included
a requirement for all Local Authorities to have a scrutiny role
relating to RDAs.
o) Freedom of Information (FOI) – Internal Audit
Review
The Board noted that at its meeting on 30 January the NWDA Audit
Committee had received a report on Internal Audit’s review of the
Agency’s framework, policies, procedures and practices to ensure
compliance with the Freedom of Information Act. The review
was completed in December 2006 and concluded that the controls in
place provided good assurance that risks were adequately and
effectively managed. The Board noted that a recommendation
had been made concerning the compliance to FOI by Sub Regional
Partnerships. The Agency’s Legal Team was currently
investigating whether SRPs should be defined as public authorities
and if so the Agency would then ensure that they each had a
publication scheme in place. Board Members noted that FOI
status of URCs and SRPs had no direct compliance implications for
the Agency.
p) Study Visit to Northern Ireland
The Chief Executive reported that he had led a small team to
Northern Ireland to visit Invest Northern Ireland (Northern
Ireland’s Development Agency). The purpose of the visit was
to explore and compare areas of mutual interest relating to
economic development and regeneration, explore the public / private
interface and to develop potential areas of future
collaboration. The Board noted that both organisations
had similar objectives in respect of economic growth, however
Invest Northern Ireland did not have responsibility for the wider
economic regeneration agenda.
The Board was advised that the visit was successful and provided
a good start to the development of a strategic relationship.
A team from Invest Northern Ireland would make a reciprocal visit
later in the year.
q) Appointment of NWDA Director of
Skills
The Board noted that following Fran Hulbert’s retirement in
December 2006, Dr Lis Smith had been appointed as Director of
Skills Policy.
87/10 FINANCE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Anil Ruia declared an interest in Renovo which was included in
the Delegations (appendix 2 to the report).
The Board noted the Agency’s financial position for period
ending 31 December 2006 and the actions being taken to ensure that
the Agency’s overall expenditure for 2006/07 was in line with the
Resource outturn.
The Board also noted that the Agency was continuing to play a
leading role on the development of the RDA CSR submission to HM
Treasury; and that the Agency was working to incorporate efficiency
savings as required by HM Treasury across the SIP assumptions for
2007/08 to 2009/10.
As part of the report the Board received an update on the use of
Delegations and the Delegations process operating across the
Agency.
The Board noted the Delegations for the period 10 December 2006
to 5 January 2007.
87/11 CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
The Chairman reported on the following:
- The visit to the region by Margaret Hodge, who visited Burnley
and Blackpool. The visit also included a meeting with key business
leaders which was very positive and supportive of the region and
the Agency.
- Media City, which was progressing very well. Legal
documentation would be completed by 16 February 2007.
- Board Membership. The Minister of State had agreed to extend
Brenda Smith’s term of office on the NWDA Board to the end of
December 2008.
87/12 MINUTES FROM THE ENVIRONMENT SUB COMMITTEE
HELD ON 18 JANUARY 2007
The minutes were noted.
87/13 MINUTES FROM THE ENTERPRISE, INNOVATION AND
SKILLS SUB COMMITTEE HELD ON 18 JANUARY 2007
The minutes were noted.
87/14 MINUTES FROM THE MARKETING, COMMUNICATIONS
AND TOURISM SUB COMMITTEE HELD ON 18 JANUARY 2007
The minutes were noted.
87/15 MINUTES FROM THE AUDIT COMMITTEE HELD ON 30
JANUARY 2007
The minutes were noted.
87/16 DATE AND TIME OF NEXT
MEETING
The next meeting will be held at 12.30pm on Thursday 15 March 2007
at NWDA Headquarters, Renaissance House, Warrington.