Initial three-year secondment for new City Deal director Beirne
KELLIE BEIRNE has been appointed programme director for the Cardiff Capital Region’s (CCR) £1.2bn City Deal.
The deputy chief executive of Monmouthshire Council has been appointed following an open recruitment process.
She will take her new role, for an initial seconded three-year period with an annual salary of £112,000, in the summer.
Over the next 20 years, the City Deal project aims to leverage a further £4bn of private sector funding and create 25,000 new jobs – including 10,000 planned apprenticeship roles.
Ms Beirne will be responsible for making a senior level contribution towards developing and ensuring the delivery of the programme.
She will also help identify opportunities to promote the needs and potential of the CCR in order to influence policy and further external funding.
Ms Beirne will work closely with the regional cabinet of the CCR, which is made up of the leaders and chief executives of the region’s 10 local authorities.
The delivery team for the City Deal is based in Nantgarw.
Ms Beirne said: “I am delighted to be appointed as the new programme director and feel honoured to have the chance to lead the development of the CCR City Deal.
“I am looking forward to taking the CCR City Deal forward and using it as an opportunity to grow an international presence and profile, beyond Wales.
“We are excited about laying the groundwork and foundations for investment in current and future generations.
“It is important that we recognise the potential for prosperity for all and build on the strengths, assets and opportunities in all 10 local authorities while focusing on not just growing, but rebalancing our economy to be sustainable, resilient and able to embrace and shape what the future will bring.”
The final decision on City Deal projects will be taken by the regional cabinet.
Some £734m of the funding has already been assigned for the next phase of the Welsh Government’s south Wales Metro transport project, with electrification of the core Valley Lines.
The remaining City Deal’s near £500m Wider Investment Fund consists of £375m of grant funding from the UK Treasury, on which interest will be incurred from so called “cost of carry” or bringing capital funding forward to fund project.
The 10 local authorities are also contributing £120m of capital from their own borrowing powers.
The total interest and capital repayment cost to the 10 local authorities over the next 25 years have been put at just over £200m.
Chair of the CCR regional cabinet and leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council, Andrew Morgan, said: “We’re very pleased to welcome Kellie Beirne as the new CCR City Deal programme director.
“She will play a crucial role in driving the CCR City Deal programme forward and I am confident she will provide comprehensive advice to the regional cabinet.”
“Kellie met all our requirements for this demanding role.
“She understands the context of the CCR City Deal, and has played a key role in pushing forward the innovation and digital strategies.
“I am confident she will thrive as the new programme director for the CCR City Deal.”
The CCR regional cabinet has already agreed to invest £37.9m to support the development of the world’s first compound semiconductor cluster in south east Wales, a project spearheaded by IQE and Cardiff University, that Ms Beirne played a key role in.
The initiative is expected to leverage up to £375m of private sector investment over the next five years, and the creation of up to 2,000 high value, high-tech jobs, with the potential for hundreds more in the wider supply chain and cluster development.
Earlier this year, the cabinet agreed to commit £40m towards the redevelopment of Cardiff Central train station.