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ACE’s Michael Hall asks whether the government’s proposals for Local Enterprise Partnerships can make a difference to local economic development.
The development of local economies is about to take a new form. As part of the localism agenda England’s Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) are set to be replaced. The government envisages that Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) will serve as their replacement and will “provide the strategic leadership in their areas to set out local economic priorities”.
LEPs are expected to create the right environment for business growth. They will be business-led partnerships between local councils and the private sector. They will be governed by a board made up of business leaders and local government representatives.
Fifty-six proposals for LEPs were submitted to government covering a wide range of locations in England. Different arrangements will apply in London however, where the government is presently considering devolving further powers to the Mayor and the Greater London Authority.
Change could come quickly and LEPs could begin work sooner than expected, with 24 proposals already successful Speaking at September’s Liberal Democrat party conference, business secretary Vince Cable indicated that around ten of the proposals may be given the green light this year.
Whether the LEPs succeed depends on the remits and powers they are given. From ACE’s perspective, this is the crucial unanswered question. However, such ambiguity is largely intentional. The government is keen not to impose a one-size-fits-all formula to local economic development, instead encouraging local partnerships to define a remit and boundaries that make economic sense at a local level.
It may be that the government feels that some of the RDAs’ functions – such as inward investment, sector leadership, innovation and access to finance - are best led nationally. Meanwhile other RDA responsibilities, including Regional Spatial Strategies, are set to be scrapped entirely.
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