Cash is key to LEP success, says Lord Bhattacharyya
Money and influence will largely decide whether Local Enterprise Partnerships are a success or not. That’s the view of Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, head of Warwick Manufacturing Group, who told Black Country business leaders to show the government that the region’s LEP was “a force to be reckoned with”.
Speaking at a Manufacturing Business Network dinner, organised by advisory firm Crowe Clark Whitehill, he highlighted the amount of competition to access the newly-created £1bn regional growth fund (RGF).
Lord Bhattacharyya said the Black Country – which was criticised in some quarters for setting up its own LEP and not going with Birmingham – had to argue its case much more forcibly.
He told the network: “You must make yourself heard. Be articulate. Make it clear to the government that the Black Country is a force to be reckoned with.”
Lord Bhattacharyya said that engineering employers group, the EEF, was “getting better” at lobbying the government for funding, but generally manufacturers “simply did not lobby enough”. He added that the aerospace sector excelled in this field, securing “billions of government money” as it had learnt how to lobby for funds.
