West Midlands has ‘right ingredients’ to benefit from £700m investment, says Mayor

The West Midlands has the “right ingredients” to benefit from a major new Government programme and attract fresh private investment, according to the mayor.

The Strategic Sites Accelerator was launched on Monday, November 2 and will see £700 million deployed along with expert support to unlock 10 major industrial and commercial sites across the country.

It is hoped the programme will see the creation of tens of thousands of jobs and up to £2 billion in private investment to drive reindustrialisation.

And Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, said the Accelerator will remove barriers that stop developments from progressing in the region.

The Government said it is already engaging on potential sites in Glasgow, Burgess Hill and Sheffield with technical support and expertise and added it will back regional mayors across the country.

The Accelerator will also be open to sites across every nation and region of the UK, from science parks and manufacturing sites to innovation districts held back by viability constraints.

Mr Parker said: “Our West Midlands Growth Plan and new Reindustrialisation Blueprint set out how we intend to create economic growth in our region.

“We want to take the great ideas being developed here, turn them into successful businesses and make sure the jobs that follow stay here.

“We have the right ingredients. But too often major investment opportunities are held back by practical barriers, whether that’s infrastructure, access to finance or getting sites ready for development.

“This Strategic Sites Accelerator is exactly the kind of partnership we need with Government to remove those barriers.

“We can then attract private investment and turn our ambitions into good, well-paid jobs for local people.”

The Accelerator will focus on commercially viable sites with strong investor demand but which face barriers including access to finance, grid connections, and planning constraints.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “Britain’s potential is everywhere, but we hear the same old arguments all too often – outdated infrastructure, insufficient access to finance, and problems with planning.

“These are barriers that hold back investment, block new jobs, and shackle our potential, and we need to do more to empower our local leaders and help drive the growth their communities deserve and expect.

“This programme will get the ball rolling for up to 10 of the UK’s most important potential sites, attract billions in investment, unlock tens of thousands of good-quality jobs in the years ahead, and bring good growth to every postcode.”