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Agenda and decisions

Venue: Council Chamber, Council House, Birmingham City Council, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B1 1BB

Contact: Dan Essex, Governance Services Manager 

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor George Adamson (Cannock Chase), Lee Barron (TUC Midlands), Jonathan Browning (Coventry & Warwickshire LEP), Councillor Yvonne Davies (Sandwell), Councillor David Hitchiner (Herefordshire), Councillor Abdul Khan (Coventry), Councillor Syeda Khatun (Sandwell), David Lane (Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee), Councillor Sebastian Lowe (Rugby), Councillor Peter Nutting (Shropshire), Councillor Jeremy Oates (Tamworth), Tim Pile (Greater Birmingham & Solihull LEP), Stewart Towe (Black Country LEP) and Councillor Lisa Trickett (Overview & Scrutiny Committee).

3.

Minutes - 17 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 155 KB

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

The minutes were agreed as a correct record, subject to an amendment to minute no. 79 (‘West Midlands Violence Reduction Unit’) to include the following:

 

The Police & Crime Commissioner David Jamieson, as the Portfolio Lead and accountable body, presented the report on the Violence Reduction Unit.  The purpose of the report was to note the establishment of the VRU and for the WMCA to commit to supporting the VRU’s preventative agenda.

4.

Forward Plan pdf icon PDF 108 KB

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

A forward plan of items to be considered at future meetings of the board was noted.

6.

Appointment of Strategic Economic Development Board Chair

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

(1)       Tim Pile was appointed chair of the Strategic Economic Development Board for the remained of 2019/20.

 

(2)       The board thanked Jonathan Browning for chairing the board since its inception and for his work in supporting the objectives of the WMCA.

7.

WMCA Budget 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 1016 KB

Presented By: Councillor Bob Sleigh

Decision:

(1)       The consolidated revenue budget monitoring position as at 31 December 2019 was noted.

 

(2)       The West Midlands Combined Authority consolidated revenue budget was approved, including:

 

(a)       the budget requirement for transport delivery 2020/21 comprising three elements:

 

(i)         £114.7m to be funded from the existing transport levy mechanism;

 

(ii)        £1.4m to be funded from grant awarded by the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee; and

 

(iii)       a transfer from earmarked reserves of £3.65m;

 

(b)       the West Midlands Combined Authority delivery budget requirement for 2020/21 of £142.6m comprising of six elements:

 

(i)         £125.6m Adult Education spending to be funded from Adult Education Budget funding devolved by the Department for Education;

 

(ii)        £9.0m to be funded from other devolution deal grants;

 

(iii)       £4.6m to be funded from Constituent Authority fees (fees to remain at the same level as 2019/20);

 

(iv)       £0.4m to be funded from Non-Constituent Authority and Observer fees (fees to remain at the same level as 2019/20);

 

(v)        £2.2m to be funded from other income; and

 

(vi)       a transfer from reserves of £0.7m.

 

(3)       The Mayoral Office budget for 2020/21 of £0.8m, to be funded from additional confirmed Mayoral capacity funding of £0.8m, was approved.

 

(4)       It was noted that the Mayor had indicated that there would be no mayoral precept during the remainder of his current term of office.

 

(5)       It was noted that funding had not yet been secured in respect of the mayoral election taking place in May 2020.

 

(6)       The prepayment of employers’ pension contributions to West Midlands Pension Fund was approved.

 

(7)       The proposal in respect of the Ring & Ride service was endorsed.

 

(8)       The Capital Programme was approved.

 

(9)       The West Midlands Combined Authority indicative five-year Medium Term Financial Plan was noted.

 

(10)     It was approved that surplus cash balances generated from the Collective Investment Fund and Residential Investment Fund were to be used to support the West Midlands Combined Authority delivery budget, thus minimising Constituent and Non-Constituent authority contributions.

 

(11)     The Director of Finance was given delegated authority, in consultation with the Portfolio Lead for Finance, to make any final changes that may result from the Final Local Government Finance Settlement.

 

(12)     An amendment to the terms of reference of the Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee, to include responsibility for review, commentary and consideration of the WMCA’s annual Treasury Management Strategy and the annual mid-year review of treasury management activity was approved.

 

(13)     The following policies and strategies were approved, as required by statute:

 

(a)       The West Midlands Combined Authority Treasury Management Strategy;

 

(b)       The West Midlands Combined Authority Capital Strategy and Minimum Revenue Provision Strategy; and

 

(c)        The West Midlands Combined Authority Pay Policy Statement.

8.

Electric Vehicle Charging and Enabling Energy Infrastructure: A West Midlands Approach pdf icon PDF 341 KB

Presented By: Councillor Ian Ward

Decision:

(1)       The case made for the acceleration of electric charging and enabling energy infrastructure in the West Midlands was supported, noting the strategic importance of this issue to the WMCA’s Industrial Strategy, Strategic Economic Plan and Climate Change Strategy #WM2041.

 

(2)       The proposal presented was considered and supported to move forward with a collaborative strategy to expand Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure across the West Midlands.

 

(3)       It was noted that an Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle evidence base had been developed to inform this proposal by Energy Capital ,Transport for West Midlands and Cenex, and a West Midlands Electric Vehicle Working Group had been convened and had met twice to further inform and shape the WMCA approach as expediently as possible.

 

(4)       It was noted that next step one could be progressed with existing resources, additional revenue funding for step two would be sought and step three would require further public investment once a clear investment case had been developed.

 

(5)       It was noted that the Director of Investment & Commercial Activities would provide further detail, clarity and cost breakdown to the WMCA Board on the financial implications underpinning the report.

9.

Intelligent Transport Systems World Congress 2024 Bid pdf icon PDF 187 KB

Presented By: Councillor Ian Ward

Decision:

(1)       The submission of a UK bid in partnership with the Department for Transport to host the Intelligent Transport Systems World Congress in 2024, hosted with the European Road Transport Telematics Implementation Co-ordination Organisation (the wider European professional body for Intelligent Transport Systems), was approved.

 

(2)       Authority was delegated to officers as set out in the report.

 

(3)       The strategic alignment of the event as a major world trade show (the largest that the region will have hosted) with the WMCA’s strategic agenda to de-carbonise the transport system and accelerate its response to the Local Industrial Strategy automotive and clean future mobility challenges was noted.

 

(4)       The timescales and funding mechanism, and that the proposal was a self-funding initiative which could be managed within existing budgets and which also had in-principle industry support and significant financial support from the Department for Transport, was noted.

10.

Sprint A34 Walsall - Birmingham and Sprint A45 Birmingham - Airport & Solihull pdf icon PDF 153 KB

Presented By: Councillor Ian Ward

Decision:

(1)       The full business cases for the Sprint A34 Walsall to Birmingham and Sprint A45 Birmingham to Airport & Solihull, which covered phase one and phase two of delivery, was approved.

 

(2)       The budget for the phase one delivery of £87.8m, to include bus priority

interventions, signal upgrades, shelter enhancements, ticket machines, utility diversions and resurfacing, was approved.

 

(3)       The £26m funding allocation within the WMCA Investment Programme, which WMCA Board earmarked in November 2019 to fund phase one for Sprint A34 Walsall to Birmingham and Sprint A45 Birmingham to Airport & Solihull was approved.

 

(4)       It was noted that the approval of the £87.8m budget would be subject to all necessary funding agreements being signed and sealed, in particular the Department for Transport funding referred to within the report.

 

(5)       It was agreed that, subject to £50.3m funding for phase two being identified and allocated:

 

(a)       the delivery of phase two, as contained within the final business cases, be approved in principle;

 

(b)       WMCA Board would receive a further report seeking approval to the budget documenting the costs, scope, benefits and confirmed delivery profile for the schemes; and

 

(c)        A full business case to cover solely the phase two delivery aspects would not be required, subject to the total phase one and two cost, scope and benefits falling within the parameters of the final business cases which were the subject of the report;

 

(6)       The submission of the A45 Birmingham to Airport & Solihull Sprint full business case to the Department for Transport was endorsed, and an expedited approval was sought in order to support delivery for 2022.

 

(7)       It was noted that as construction and utility costs for the scheme were not yet finalised, the project team would need to flexibly manage the scope of the scheme in order to maintain the overall budget, and that this would need to be managed in a way that ensured the benefits were not materially affected and appropriate change control processes implemented to manage any changes.

 

(8)       Authority was delegated to officers as set out with the report.

 

(9)       Further development and enabling work with local authority partners, to

deliver a Park & Ride site near to M6 Junction 7 on the A34 route in advance of the Commonwealth Games alongside phase one was approved.

 

(10)     It was noted that the A34 full scheme delivered a ‘benefit:cost ratio’ of 3.23:1, the A45 full scheme delivered a ‘benefit:cost ratio’ of 2.42:1 and that the overall level of economic benefit of phase one was £201.3m.

 

(11)     It was noted that the Sprint service would be operated by zero emission vehicles and the operator(s) would purchase the vehicles.

11.

Transport Delivery Committee - 6 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 161 KB

Presented By: Councillor Kath Hartley

Decision:

The minutes were noted.

12.

Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee - 13 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 127 KB

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

The minutes were approved.

13.

Housing & Land Delivery Board - 15 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 134 KB

Presented By: Councillor Mike Bird

Decision:

The minutes were noted.

14.

Young Combined Authority - 15 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 2 MB

Presented By: Young CA Representative

Decision:

The report was noted.

15.

Investment Board - 20 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 148 KB

Presented By: Councillor Bob Sleigh

Decision:

The minutes were noted.

16.

Wellbeing Board - 24 January 2020 pdf icon PDF 138 KB

Presented By: Councillor Izzi Seccombe

Decision:

The minutes were noted.

17.

Exclusion of the Public and Press

[In accordance with s100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business as it is likely to involve the disclosure of exempt information as specified in paragraph xx of the Act.]

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

The public and press were excluded from the remainder of the meeting.

18.

Midland Metro Birmingham Eastside Extension

Presented By: Councillor Ian Ward

Decision:

(1)       The progress being made on delivering the Birmingham Eastside Extension was noted.

 

(2)       The increase in the estimated outturn cost for the project to £227.2m, which delivered a ‘benefit:cost ratio’ of 3:1 calculated in accordance with

WebTAG was noted.

 

(3)       The final business case for the Birmingham Eastside Extension scheme was approved.

 

(4)       The commitment of funding, as set out in the report, was approved, in particular:

 

(i)         the commitment of £18.5m from the WMCA Investment Programme (HS2 Connectivity) for HS2 utility diversions (previously approved in October 2017) was confirmed;

 

(ii)        approval for Prudential Borrowing up to £56.5m, to be financed from Metro revenues for the Birmingham Eastside Extension was confirmed.

 

(5)       Authority was delegated to officers as set out in the report.

21.

Date of Next Meeting

Presented By: Chair

Decision:

Friday 20 March 2020 at 11.00am