West Midlands Taskforce
69. The West Midlands Taskforce was set up in December
2008 to co-ordinate the region's response to the economic downturn.
It is based on a similar taskforce which was established to address
the closure of MG Rover. The most prominent ways in which the
Taskforce and Advantage West Midlands are supporting businesses
in the downturn are:
- the establishment of a website
called www.supportwm.co.uk, a central information point
to signpost individuals and businesses to available support;
- the re-launch of the Advantage Transition Bridge
Fund, providing a total of £9 million in funding for loans
of between £50,000 and £250,000 to small and medium
sized businesses that have been unable to access credit through
commercial sources;
- £61 million in funding to the construction
industry to stimulate development that might not otherwise be
delivered in current market conditions; and
- practical support to businesses in severe distress,
including Waterford Wedgwood.
70. Unite, who are a member of the Regional Taskforce,
stated that "the level of co-ordinated and partnership working
in the West Midlands has been fairly extensive".[66]
In their written evidence to the Committee some councils suggested
that the Taskforce should communicate better with local partners
to demonstrate its value,[67]
while others believed that its activities represented a repackaging
of existing work or that they were still in the information gathering
phase.[68] Oral evidence
from Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council was positive about the
Regional Taskforce stating that they "were involved in the
taskforce at the outset and have been significant influences on
the streams of work underneath".[69]
71. Representatives from businesses were more cautious
stating, "it is early days for the taskforce. I think it
is making a difference and will make more of one."[70]
A number of business representatives expressed disappointment
that business is not included on the taskforce.[71]
The Government Office for the West Midlands indicated that the
Taskforce would issue its first report under a monitoring and
evaluation framework at the end of April.[72]
72. When the Minister appeared before the Committee
he was asked what he considered the successes of the taskforce
were. He said there were a number of things that might not have
happened if it had not been for the taskforce. The taskforce gave
a route for the region to express its concerns to Government around
issues, for example on the scrappage scheme. He also pointed out
the West Midlands was the first region to establish a Transition
Loan Fund. He gave details of a programme of 1,000 subsidised
jobs, training places and internships; and initiatives aimed at
keep high level skills in the region such as support for those
graduating this autumn but struggling to find work. He said these
were examples of schemes that would not have happened had there
not been the task force bringing together partners to make them
possible. He also held up the importance of communication between
the important regional bodies as something that the taskforce
does well, a lesson learned from the MG Rover Taskforce.[73]
Business link
73. The Business Link service was restructured in
2007 to provide a single regional support service to businesses.
It is funded by Advantage West Midlands and contracted to the
West Midlands Brokerage Services Limited and Gateway West Midlands
Limited.
74. Business Link West Midlands told us that they
received nearly £42million in the year 2008-2009, to deliver
its extensive range of business support programmes to companies
in the West Midlands region. This involved core funding of £24.7million
provided by Advantage West Midlands (AWM) to deliver the Business
Link service. Core funding included £3.0million, which was
specifically ring-fenced to provide consultancy grant support
to client businesses in projects relating to Diversification and
Access to Finance. AWM funded other programmes such as Leadership
and Management, Designing Demand and various Social Enterprise
programmes costing £1.5million.[74]
In addition, AWM provided additional funding of £1.4 million
over and above the core contract value.[75]
75. Business Link West Midlands has responded to
the economic downturn in several ways. In October 2008, it set
up a dedicated Credit Crunch Hotline to give practical advice
to businesses which has received an average of 62 calls a month.
It has also launched a series of 'How To' guides and workshops
which provide information and guidance to help businesses. There
have been over 100 workshops covered key issues for business including:
Managing Cash Flow, Reducing Energy and Raw Material Costs and
Dealing with Redundancies which have been attended by nearly 1,000
delegates. Businesses are referred to Business Advisers if they
require more detailed support.[76]
76. In their evidence to the Committee on 11 May,
representatives from businesses said that they signposted their
members to Business Link for advice and support. Business representatives
said that feedback from its members on the support provided by
Business Link was mixed: some small businesses that attended the
credit crunch workshops felt the information was not relevant
to them. Business Link is perceived to be most relevant for start-up
businesses; it suffers from a historical poor reputation among
established businesses. The regionalisation of the service may
also have given the impression that the service has withdrawn
from some areas. Business Link has tried to increase the awareness
of its services through television advertising.[77]
Infrastructure projects
77. The Government committed to maintain its commitment
to investing in schools, hospitals and national infrastructure
in the Chancellor's the 2008 Pre-Budget speech. The Government
singled out investment in energy efficiency, the social housing
stock, and in further and higher education as priority areas for
investment in 2008-09 to prepare the economy for a high-tech,
low-carbon future. With spending brought forward to 2009-10 to
help improve transport infrastructure, science research facilities,
school buildings and primary healthcare facilities. Despite the
Government's commitment, the British Ceramics Confederation in
its evidence said that they "would welcome some practical
help, such as the Government increasing funding for social and
affordable housing and, I suppose, honouring commitments around
Building Schools for the Future".[78]
78. Staffordshire County Council recognised its responsibility
to support businesses through accelerating infrastructure but
said "This is not always easy, because capital programmes
are difficult to get up and running, particularly when you have
to buy land, obtain planning consents and that sort of thing,
but we have accelerate programmes, both on highways and on educations,
to try to invest more money in our local economy and to do it
fast".[79]
79. Trudi Elliot, Director of the Government Office,
said that problems such as falling land values had affected the
delivery of some projects and unblocking projects that were in
danger of stalling was seen as a priority for the taskforce. The
Minister met with the lead officers of the top eight funding bodies
in the region, so they have the opportunity to say where funding
from one might cause a project to stall, so they could explore
ways of finding the money elsewhere. She stressed the importance
of Advantage West Midlands identifying 20 strategic investment
locations, most of which featured multi-funded projects, and focussing
on those.[80] She also
said that the Government Office wanted to use infrastructure delivery
as a way to take forward the green agenda and economic inclusion,
the latter to try and drive up the skills level and bring into
the work force those who might not have been in the work force
before.[81]
Prompt payment
80. In October 2008 the Government committed all
central government Departments to paying suppliers within ten
working days. The Pre-Budget Report announced that regional development
agencies had also chosen to adopt the commitment, and work was
underway to extend the commitment to the NHS and local authorities.
81. Representatives from business stated that the
West Midlands was "doing better than any of the other regions"
at meeting the 10 day payment commitment by central government
and those that were not meeting the timescale were working towards
it. They acknowledged that payment within 10 days was a challenging
target for some public sector organisations such as the NHS and
local authorities.[82]
82. Staffordshire County Council stated that it paid
all its suppliers within 10 days, of which £360 million went
to the local economy. Stoke on Trent City Council has also signed
up to the same agreement.[83]
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