Visions for region’s post-covid future
NEW images have been unveiled of the three key sites which it is hoped will secure the long-term future of the East Midlands economy with a massive £235 million post-covid plan, creating thousands of jobs.
They show how three massive zones – covering areas around East Midlands Airport, Toton and Ratcliffe-on-soar Power Station - might be transformed by major development.
They are aimed at boosting business to levels which would drive large-scale job creation and unlock a new era of green growth for the regional economy.
The new images have been released as the region takes a decisive step towards setting up the East Midlands Development Corporation,
which will help drive the vision’s progress, by submitting a business plan to Government.
And it comes just two weeks after Chancellor Rishi Sunak gave the goahead for a freeport to be established in the area.
An interim body, which will begin the work of the planned East Midlands Development Corporation before Parliament formally approves what will be a pioneering new model for upping the pace of regional growth, will be set up from next month.
The interim body will help masterplan and enable development, working with businesses, investors and universities to help get projects off the ground.
The submitted business case to the Government, outlines how investment in the sites could deliver 84,000 jobs, more than £4.8 billion in added value, and thousands of new homes.
The development corporation is one of the key projects of the Midlands Engine, the partnership of private and public sector organisations which works to promote investment and growth across the region.
Midlands Engine chairman Sir John Peace has chaired the group which led development of the new body.
He said: “What we have in front of us is one of the biggest opportunities the UK has ever seen to not just build on the potential of some major economic assets, but to transform the economy of an entire region in the process.
“The sites themselves are collectively the size of three London Olympic Parks and the vision for their growth is both ambitious and futuristic, embracing our carbon zero future and unlocking new opportunities which range from international trade to community-level growth.
“We must begin the work to unlock that potential now, and we start next month with the launch of the interim body.”
The five councils initially backing the interim vehicle are Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire county councils, together with Rushcliffe and Broxtowe borough councils, and North West Leicestershire District Council.
Talks on how the model can
KEY SITES EARMARKED FOR £235M INVESTMENT
be extended further into the East Midlands are continuing.
Councils in Derbyshire and Lincolnshire are also supporting the initiative for the East Midlands.
Councillor Kay Cutts, leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “We are asking the Government to invest in our communities as we have built a vision to attract inward investors from all over the world – for every £1 invested we will deliver £2 back.”
Leader of Broxtowe Borough Council Councillor Milan Radulovic said: “This is an incredibly exciting project that will shape the future of our borough.
“Thousands of jobs and homes will be created for local people and the benefits will be felt not just in Chilwell and Toton, but across the whole area.”
Rushcliffe Borough Council is also committed to the project and leader Councillor Simon Robinson, said: “This submission is a huge step to securing a development corporation for the East Midlands.
“We’re committed to low carbon initiatives and are very pleased to see the very ambitious plans for the future of parts of the Ratcliffe on Soar site.”
The three sites are:
■ East Midlands Airport area, which supports the region’s status as a centre for advanced manufac
turing and research, and is a national and international logistics gateway which will be at the heart of the new Freeport zone.
■ Ratcliffe-on-soar Power Station site, transforming part of the site of the UK’S last coal-fired power stations into a national centre for carbon zero technologies and manufacturing innovations, which is also in the Freeport zone.
■ Toton and Chetwynd, creating a new, connected community which will centre on a Garden of Innovation and the proposed HS2 Hub Station.
Clare James, East Midlands Airport’s managing director, said: “When the region does well, so too does the airport and vice versa. “It’s therefore in all of our interests that the East Midlands prospers, and the airport, which is our doorway to the world, will continue to play a key role in this.” Elizabeth Fagan, chair of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “The freeport has been a fantastic win for the region and we are now working with partners to deliver it at pace. “The proposed East Midlands Development Corporation will provide significant investments to accelerate and sustain our region’s economic recovery and growth.” The East Midlands Chamber of Commerce represents 4,300 businesses across the region.
Its chief executive, Scott Knowles, said: “The Government’s decision to award a freeport to the East Midlands is a huge vote of confidence in our prospects. “The development corporation and the partnership behind it give us an additional opportunity to drive joined-up progress faster than ever before and to turn the region into the UK’S investment destination of choice. It’s vital that the whole region now gets behind these opportunities and makes the most of their potential.”
What we have in front of us is one of the biggest opportunities the UK has ever seen.
Sir John Peace