This meeting was the first meeting of the East Midlands Combined County Authority Business Advisory Board, and a number of introductory and scoping reports were included on the agenda. The agenda included items about the inclusive growth strategy being developed for the East Midlands, the development of an investment pipeline for the region, and the work programme for the Business Advisory Board.

Introduction to EMCCA

A presentation about the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) was scheduled to be given to the Business Advisory Board at the meeting: To support the Membership and the public on understanding the role and remit of the Business Advisory Board by council officers. This presentation included information on the history of devolution in the East Midlands, the role of the Business Advisory Board, and the governance framework of the EMCCA. The presentation also included information on the investment funds that have been devolved to the East Midlands. The agenda included the observation that:

The initial deal is just a starting point…The true benefits and economic value of devolution are still to come.

The presentation went on to claim:

Our aspiration is for the East Midlands to become a devolution ‘trailblazer’.

The meeting considered the role of the Business Advisory Board. The Board's terms of reference state that:

The Advisory Board will seek to act in a regional capacity to support the development of the economic growth vision for the Combined County Authority area and make recommendations to the Combined County Authority, in consultation with wider thematic committees where appropriate.

The agenda pack explained that:

The Business Advisory Board:

• sits as the strategic business voice to the Combined County Authority Board, the Mayor, Combined County Authority Committees and Officers. Providing strategic business advice on economy, business, skills, transport, employment, housing, UKSPF¹ and future devolution deals
• act as the lead business voice to the Combined County Authority for the region, representing business to the Combined County Authority

The Inclusive Growth Commission

The agenda for the meeting included a presentation about the Inclusive Growth Commission, which was launched in November 2024 to provide knowledge and evidence that can be used to develop the EMCCA’s inclusive growth strategy. The Commission will be run by the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) and will publish an interim report in Spring 2025 and a final report in Autumn 2025.

The stated focus of the Inclusive Growth Commission is:

• To investigate, evidence and provide a framework for the achievement of the region’s ambitions for inclusive growth
• To understand the root causes of what’s holding the region back
• To draw on existing and new research and insights, asking new questions with a refresh of the evidence base
• To look beyond this Parliament to the next decade and beyond

Investment Pipeline

A report on the investment pipeline for the EMCCA was scheduled for discussion at the meeting. The report notes that:

Known, quantified public investment arising from devolution is estimated at approximately £4bn, with the potential to leverage further through borrowing and private investment.

The report goes on to explain that EMCCA will need to:

develop a comprehensive, long-term pipeline of investment projects to underpin further commissioning of investable propositions.

An initial £1 million of investment has already been allocated:

to develop the pipeline system and next set of investment propositions.

Membership and Representation on Thematic Committees

A report on the membership of the Business Advisory Board was scheduled to be discussed. The report notes that the business and business representative membership has been recruited through an open process. The report asks the board to:

discuss completeness of the current membership

and to:

identify representatives from the Board for the three EMCCA Thematic Committees

These committees are the:

• Skills and Employment Committee
• Transport & Connectivity Committee, and
• Investment Committee

The report also asks the board to consider how it will appoint people to the following roles:

• Employee and wider trade union representative
• Chair of the Innovation Advisory Board
• Department for Business and Trade representative

Work Programme 2024/25

Finally, a draft work programme for the 2024/25 year was scheduled to be discussed at the meeting. The draft work programme includes consideration of the Local Growth Plan, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, business support, and the East Midlands Investment Zone.