Zone will be £700m boost, says chamber
Confirmation that Birmingham and Solihull's enterprise zone has got the go-ahead will be the region's biggest economic boost for many years, according to the West Midlands Chamber of Commerce Group.
The organisation estimated that more than £700m could be spent on regeneration projects in the area once the cash-saving zone has been set up.
Birmingham's zone will comprise seven clusters of sites across 68 hectares of land in the city centre.
Chamber of Commerce chief executive, Jerry Blackett, said: "It is the biggest potential transformation that I have seen in recent years – it is right up there with New Street Station, and probably beyond.
"The creation of the EZ is a means of accelerating growth that we wouldn’t otherwise have got. Today’s announcement is a huge vote of confidence by the government in our ability to deliver what is the country’s most ambitious EZ."
