Insider Media Limited

Another West Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is in the process of being formed as Birmingham and Solihull inch closer to the creation of a joint venture.

With proposals for establishing the partnerships facing a September deadline, Birmingham Chamber Group (BCG) hosted a summit of key businesses in Edgbaston to pave the way for the creation of a new LEP.

The announcement comes just days after Coventry and Warwickshire Chambers revealed plans to form a partnership.

LEPs are due to replace Advantage West Midlands (AWM), which the coalition has decided will face the axe.

The government has said that LEPs will be business-led and the meeting at Chamber House in Edgbaston was a chance for companies and organisations to have their say on the subject.

The meeting, chaired by Birmingham Chamber Group chief executive Jerry Blackett, explored businesses’ views on the LEP. Topics discussed included the best ways to attract investment into the region and how it could create the best environment for the business community to thrive in.

Blackett said: “By grasping the LEP opportunity at the earliest possible moment, local businesses have the best chance of ensuring that it delivers for them.

“Today's meeting allowed us to get into the guts of what a successful LEP for Birmingham and Solihull will look like and achieve. It must create wealth and increase private sector employment."

He added that the new organisation must have substance and the power to deliver results.

“It's also clear that it must have teeth and that we need to ensure it has real powers and the ability to direct funds in future," he said. “I think there's also a duty on us to ensure from the outset that LEPs work together effectively to deliver for the West Midlands. We must not throw the baby out with the bathwater.”