Agenda and minutes

There were no disclosable pecuniary interests.

(a)  To agree the Minutes of the meeting held on 11^th March 2015

(b)  Matters Arising.

The minutes of the meeting held on 11^th March 2015 were agreed and signed as a true record.

In relation to Minute 50/14, the Board were advised that the matter on Fuel Poverty would be picked up later in the year and would therefore be added to the work programme.

Report of the Executive Director of Place

The Scrutiny Board considered a report of the Executive Director of Place, which provided feedback on Elected Members and Officer attendance, costs and benefits of the City Council’s involvement in the 2015 Marche International Des Professionals De L’Immobilier (MIPIM) conference / exhibition.

The report indicated that this was the 25^th anniversary of Europe’s largest and most successful property conference / exhibition, with over 21,000 delegates, including some 4,500 investors from over 89 countries and that MIPIM continued to host the largest gathering of international property leaders.  The primary objective of the Coventry and Warwickshire presence was to attract and encourage investment into the area, raise the area’s international image and demonstrate that Coventry and Warwickshire was in the marketplace for business and new property investment.

The Scrutiny Board noted the key partners and associate partners for MIPIM 2015 and were advised that although in previous years there had been a strong presence from the wider Warwickshire region through the LEP, 2015 was the first time that Warwickshire County Council had taken part and MIPIM was attended by the Leader of the Council, Leader of the Labour Group, the Head of Economic Growth, the Strategic Director for Communities and the Inward Investment Manager.

Members discussed the outcomes of the event and noted the positive feedback from partners, along with the total costs for the Coventry and Warwickshire presence at the event (£172,466.68) against the third party funds secured, which were in excess of the cost and resulted in a carry forward of £15,737.54 which would be used to support MIPIM 2016.

The Scrutiny Board were advised that, as part of the promotional material prepared for the event, there had been a video presentation which was used to raise the profile of Coventry and highlight the benefits of investing within the City.  The Members requested that arrangements be made for them to view the video.

RESOLVED that the Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3):-

1.  Note the outcomes of MIPIM 2015.

2.  Recommend to the Cabinet Member for Business, Enterprise and Employment that Coventry City Council attends MIPIM 2016, with the continued aspiration of a private sector partnership meeting the entire project costs.

3.  Request that arrangements be made for the Board to view the promotional video used at the MIPIM conference to raise the City’s profile.

Report of the Lord Mayor and Executive Director of Place

The Scrutiny Board considered a report of the Lord Mayor and Executive Director of Place, which provided feedback on Elected Members and Officer attendance, costs and benefits of the trade and investment delegation to new Delhi and North West India.

The report indicated that the UK’s bilateral trade with India was worth £12.6bn and that the UK was the largest European investor in the Country, with India the largest Asian investor in the UK when judged by the number of projects in which it is involved.  The International Trade and Investment Plan produced by the Council’s Business Investment Team had identified India as a key region for establishing strategic international trade and investment opportunities.

Working in conjunction with UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) the business delegation included companies from Coventry and Warwickshire, and the itinerary had included high level business meetings in New Delhi and Chandigarh, North-West India.  This had provided an excellent opportunity to discuss future trade and investment with India.  The visit also highlighted the importance of maintaining a long-term relationship with North-West India’s Deputy Commissioner’s office and the business community in India to attract trade and inward investment to Coventry.

The report submitted provided details of the benefits of the visit along with future opportunities, including a number of visits to be made to Coventry by delegations from North West India during the coming months.

In considering the report, the Board Members highlighted the likely benefits of having discussions with Elected Members with knowledge of the area prior to future visits and discussed what they considered to be missed opportunities, in particular by not visiting Jalandhar, given the Council’s twinning interests with the area.

RESOLVED that the Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3):-

1.  Endorse the report of the trade and investment delegation to New Delhi and North West India.

2.  Recommend that the Cabinet Member for Business, Enterprise and Employment:-

a.  Support the development of a detailed action plan to facilitate further trade and investment opportunities with India, in particular the city of Jalandhar.

b.  Encourage and support visits to Coventry by potential inward investors from India by keeping in mind the twinning arrangements of Coventry with Jalandhar

Outstanding Issues are included in the Work Programme below.

There were no outstanding issues.

Report of the Scrutiny Co-ordinator

RESOLVED that the Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3) note the Work Programme for the Municipal Year 2015/2016 with following matters being scheduled for consideration at the meeting on 16^th September 2015:

Availability of land for housing and employment - The Coventry Local Plan

Jobs and Growth Strategy Annual Report

City Centre Retail Developments and Friargate, to include a visit Eaton Tower prior to the meeting to view the Friargate and wider city centre developments.

There were no other items of public business.