Decisions

(1)      The status of Investment Programme delivery was noted.

(2)      The Investment Programme funding status was noted.

Agreed as a correct record.

Councillor Waseem Ali (Sandwell), Councillor Tony Jefferson (Stratford-on-Avon) and Sue Summers (West Midlands Development Capital).

Monday 9 August 2021 at 11.00am.

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

The report was noted.

The report was noted.

The report was noted.

Friday 17 September 2021 at 11.00am

(1)      The financial outturn position as at 31 May 2021 was noted.

(2)      The earmarking of up to £0.5m reserves to support proposals subject to separate papers to the WMCA Board was noted.

(3)      The update on the Medium Term Financial Planning Process was noted.

(4)      A £12.2m Collective Investment Fund loan was approved, following its approval by the Investment Board.

(5)      The submission of the Phase 2 Business Case application to the Zero Emission Bus Regional Area scheme to the Department for Transport by 20 August 2021 was approved.

The minutes were noted.

The minutes were noted.

The minutes were noted.

The minutes were noted.

The minutes were noted.

(1)      Mark Smith was appointed to the Chair of Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee for a four year period, starting 1 October 2021, subject to the satisfactory completion of normal appointment processes.

(2)      David Lane was thanked for undertaking the role of Chair of the committee for the past five years.

(3)      The appointment of David Lane as Chair of the Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee was extended until the 30 September 2021 so as to enable him to oversee the committee’s approval of the WMCA’s 2020/21 final accounts.

(1)      The revised refresh and rebrand of the HS2 Regional Enterprise Board was approved.

(2)      The revised terms of reference for the HS2 Regional Enterprise Board were approved, subject to a further review of the board’s membership so as to ensure all parts of the region were properly represented.

(1)      The establishment of a Taskforce focussing on race equalities was agreed.

(2)      The proposed approach including scope, composition and timetable was noted.

(1)      The recommendations of the review into the West Midlands business support eco-system were endorsed, which were that the West Midlands should make four major changes:

·       Put in place a modern customer journey, built around the user not the provider.

·       Implement a new approach to account management, covering the largest firms, investors and SMEs, with the LEP Growth Hubs, local authority teams and the West Midlands Growth Company operating as a fully integrated support eco-system.

·       Replace the current large number of schemes which were coming to an end with new premium products aimed at specific sectors, supply chains and issues, and delivered region-wide at scale.

·       Carry out a campaign to drive up demand and usage.

(2)      These recommendations, and a commitment to a shared implementation and funding plan, overseen by the Strategic Economic Development Board with delivery of each element carried out by a lead organisation on behalf of the region, enabling and supporting local priorities and building upon existing local strengths, were agreed.

(3)      It was to be ensured that the Governance Review covered the need for the Strategic Economic Development Board to hold individual programmes and agencies to account on behalf of the West Midlands as a whole, this being key to delivery.

(4)      It was agreed that the three LEPs, the WMCA and its constituent authorities commission the next stage of work to implement the recommendations so that early work on delivery planning could get under way, to co-ordinate with the West Midlands Growth Company’s review of account management.

(1)      The capital funding request of £7.7m to fund the development of a brand new City of Wolverhampton College Technical Centre that would be situated at the rear of the College’s existing Wellington Road campus and form Phase 1 of the wider City Learning Quarter Programme was approved.

(2)      It was noted that the WMCA Programme Assurance & Appraisal team had undertaken both independent assurance and investment appraisal on the business case submission and their respective reports were attached to support the consideration of the business case.

(3)      It was noted that this investment was approved by the Investment Board on 29 June as noted in the minutes attached at agenda item 15, minute no. 12.

(1)      The setting up of the proposed WMCO, a Co-Invest Equity Fund designed to facilitate investment into Growth SMEs to aid the recovery of the West Midlands economy was approved, noting that a Full Business Case would follow before the fund was launched.

(2)      The initial grant funding request of £12.5m from the WMCA Investment

Programme as set out in the Outline Business Case was approved, subject to the approval of a Full Business Case detailing the form of Delivery Vehicle, noting that this represented 50% of the funding required to deliver this proposal.

(3)      It was noted that the onward development of the proposal, Full Business Case, delivery options and financial modelling would be taken forward through detailed scrutiny and consultation of the West Midlands Finance Directors group.

(4)      It was noted that WMCA had approached the British Business Bank to pursue the potential to secure match funding of £12.5m from Central Government sources and, if available, the British Business Bank was likely to require a match funding contribution from WMCA as requested in the Outline Business Case, and that the next stage Full Business Case would include details of the full funding structure.

Noted.

Agreed as a correct record.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Ian Courts (Solihull), Councillor Patrick Harley (Dudley), Councillor Lezley Picton (Shropshire), Tim Pile (Greater Birmingham & Solihull LEP), Councillor David Sidaway (Telford & Wrekin), Councillor David Vickers (Dudley) and David Lane (Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee).