University of Birmingham: City makes pitch for Investment Zones to unlock growth in East Birmingham
Birmingham City Council, working with Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority, has today made an Expression of Interest to the Government for a series of Investment Zones that will “unlock growth” in East Birmingham & North Solihull.
Five of the nine overall sites fall within Birmingham, with the aim of unlocking investment in infrastructure, creating jobs, building homes, and driving public service innovation.
Councillor Ian Ward, speaking at Tyseley Cluster, one of the sites identified within the Expression of Interest, said: “We have made it clear that Birmingham City Council, along with our partners in the region, has ambitious plans to drive investment and growth in our region, and in particular into the east of the city, where rates of deprivation and unemployment continue to hold far too many lives back.
“The Investment Zones would help us to unlock growth in East Birmingham, providing the jobs and homes that our residents need, and providing the improved infrastructure to connect communities to employment sites.”
The Investment Zones are likely to offer a series of incentives to help to drive investment from the private sector. However, Birmingham’s political leaders have made it clear in its submission that the tax breaks must also be accompanied by investment into infrastructure.
Cllr Ward said: “In order to improve the lives and life chances of the people of East Birmingham and North Solihull we will require significant investment from both the public and the private sector. By creating jobs and building vital infrastructure and improved transport links we can help to deliver true levelling up to this region.”
Tyseley Cluster provides a major opportunity for the future of low and zero-carbon energy technologies, and is already home to the Birmingham Energy Innovation Centre and is the proposed National Centre for the Decarbonisation of Heat.
These proposed investment zones will be a tremendous asset to the region. We have been working with Birmingham City Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority across a number of projects to decarbonise key sectors and we look forward to continuing this collaboration in the future.
Professor Martin Freer, Director of the Energy Research Accelerator and the Birmingham Energy Institute
David Horsfall Director at Tyseley Energy Park said: “We are delighted that Tyseley Energy Park falls into one of the identified Investment Zones. We recognise that this area has an immense amount of potential to drive innovation, accelerate the transition to net zero and stimulate growth that will ultimately support a large and diverse community, and we welcome the range of opportunities this investment could bring to the area.