Lyons Inquiry:
Lyons to meet businesses to discuss local economic prosperity
Lyons Inquiry Press Notice: 17 August 2006
Sir Michael Lyons will be meeting local business people in a series of meetings across England. The meetings form part of a wide programme of consultation and stakeholder engagement being undertaken as part of Sir Michael's independent Inquiry into Local Government.
The meetings will debate issues such as:
- Current local authority arrangements for promoting economic prosperity in their area, and scope for extending this role.
- What changes are needed to ensure that the extended role of local authorities in the promotion of local economic prosperity is most effective.
The Lyons Inquiry has been working in close partnership with local Chambers of Commerce in each area, London First, and the CBI and British Chambers of Commerce to organise these meetings.
Outcomes from these discussions will feed into Sir Michael's forthcoming National Conference on Economic Prosperity, to be held in London on 14 September 2006. This conference will look at the emerging role for local authorities and agencies in promoting economic growth.
Ahead of the meetings, due to take place in Leeds, Newbury, London and Coventry over the next two weeks, Sir Michael said:
"In advance of my National Conference on Economic Prosperity, I am keen to talk to local business people to get their perspective on the role of local authorities in place shaping and fostering economic prosperity in their areas. During the course of these meetings I hope to meet representatives from both large and small businesses from across a wide range of business sectors.
"A stronger emphasis on local economic prosperity, jobs and investment is needed for the good of the national economy, as well performing local economies can help to grow the national 'cake' available to fund public services."
David Frost, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
"Business, local authorities and central Government must work together to find better ways to build communities and promote economic development. Together with the recent report from the BCC and Institute of Public Finance, 'Building Communities', Sir Michael's business round-tables offer real scope to ensure the business voice is heard in this debate."
Baroness Jo Valentine, Chief Executive of London First, said:
"The key issue for London's business community is how to improve its relationship with local government and local decision-making to accommodate the capital's continued growth and ensure its continued prosperity and competitiveness. The Lyons Inquiry offers a unique opportunity to adjust the present arrangements to achieve these objectives."
Ian Williams, Director Of Policy at Leeds Chamber of Commerce, said:
"Leeds has transformed itself over the past few years from a traditional, northern city to a powerhouse of the Northern economy. Today Leeds has flourishing banking, financial and legal sectors, supported by a modern city centre and an excellent reputation for education. The business community is a major contributor to this success, for instance through local business rates, and has a very important role to play in the continued success of the city.
"It is therefore essential that Leeds businesses have an opportunity to influence local decision making. The Leeds Chamber welcomes this chance to influence Government thinking on place-shaping and local economic prosperity, and is sure Sir Michael will gain a valuable insight into these issues by talking directly to Leeds businesses."
Notes for Editors
- The National Conference on Economic Prosperity will take place on Thursday 14 September in central London. Key speakers include Sir Michael Lyons, Rt Hon Ruth Kelly MP, Lord Bruce-Lockhart, Kate Barker, Sir Digby Jones (former Director-General, CBI) and David Frost (Director-General, BCC). Further details of the conference can be found at www.lyonsinquiryconference.com.
- Four Business round-table meetings have been arranged as follows:
- Leeds Friday 18 August from 8:30am, hosted by the Leeds Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
- Newbury Monday 21 August from 8:30am, hosted by the Thames Valley Chambers of Commerce Group.
- London Tuesday 22 August from 5:30pm, hosted by London First.
- Coventry Wednesday 30 August from 8:30am, hosted by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce.
- The Lyons Inquiry has worked closely with the host organisations, CBI, BCC and the Small Business Service to invite a representative selection of businesses (by sector and by size) working in these localities. Between 20 and 30 business people will be at each meeting, which are all now fully subscribed.
- Sir Michael Lyons was originally commissioned in July 2004 by the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chancellor to make recommendations on how to reform the local government funding system by December 2005. On 20 September 2005 the remit of the Inquiry was extended to enable Sir Michael to consider issues of function before finalising his conclusions on funding.
- On 15 December 2005 Sir Michael issued a consultation paper and interim report. A further paper was published on 8th May 2006 entitled "National prosperity, local choice and civic engagement" with the Inquiry concluding with a final report to Ministers in late 2006.
- Copies of the reports, submissions, research commissioned, and the terms of reference for the Inquiry, can be found on the Lyons Inquiry website.
- For general information on the work of the Inquiry, contact Marcus Chrysostomou at GNN on 020 7261 8356.
