City leader calls for role in Brexit talks Clancy urges PM to follow lead for Scotland
BIRMINGHAM’S council leader is seeking urgent talks with Prime Minister Theresa May to demand that the city has a voice in negotiations to exit the European Union.
Coun John Clancy wrote to the new prime minister arguing that Birmingham could make a major contribution to the British economy as the nation prepares to quit the European Union.
He wants to meet Mrs May to discuss how the Government could ensure Birmingham and other major cities succeed once Brexit takes place.
It follows Mrs May’s visit to Scotland to meet First Minister Nicola Sturgeon last week in which she promised the country would have a voice in EU talks.
Mrs May said: “I want the Scottish government to be fully engaged in our discussion.”
And council leaders representing combined authorities in the north of England, such as Greater Manchester and Sheffield, have also written to Mrs May to say it was “absolutely vital” their voice was heard during negotiations.
Coun Clancy is pushing for Birmingham, the UK’s largest city outside London, to be consulted on issues such as how to replace funding which came from the EU in the past. He said: “I’m a proud Labour politician but I’m also a pragmatist and from day one in my role as Birmingham City Council leader I’ve met, worked with and lobbied a number of Conservative government ministers.
“So I’ve wasted no time in writing to Theresa May requesting an urgent meeting with myself and other Birmingham leaders to discuss how our city can play a big part in addressing the post-Brexit challenges the UK now faces. In my letter, I’ve stressed that our great city is well placed to work with her government to grasp the opportunities and to tackle the challenges that the next period holds.
“In the short term, we must work out a way of maintaining the investment plans that are currently based on EU funding and ensure that long term repatriation of funds comes down to the local level and not just Whitehall.”
He pointed out that Business Secretary Greg Clark had already promised the needs of major cities would be considered and said he hoped for support from Sajid Javid, the new Local Government Secretary in Mrs May’s government, who is MP for Bromsgrove.
Coun Clancy said: “There must be a voice for the great cities in the negotiations with the EU, as part of the local government representation that Greg Clark has already promised, and I would hope the new Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Sajid Javid will agree.”
Launching her bid for leadership of the Conservative Party at a speech in Birmingham last week, Mrs May called for help for “not one or even two of our great regional cities but every single one of them”.
Coun Clancy said he wanted to discuss what that meant for Birmingham. He said: “Actions of course will speak louder than words and I firmly believe that Birmingham can and should be at the forefront of any such plan.”