BLACK COUNTRY EXECUTIVE JOINT COMMITTEE Wednesday 31 July 2019, 9.30am Walsall Council Conference Room 3 PUBLIC DRAFT MINUTES VOTING MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE Councillor Mike Bird, Walsall MBC - Chair Dr Helen Paterson, Walsall MBC Councillor Patrick Harley, Dudley MBC Kevin O’Keefe, Dudley MBC Councillor Yvonne Davies, Sandwell MBC David Stevens, Sandwell MBC Councillor Ian Brookfield, Wolverhampton CC Tim Johnson, City of Wolverhampton NON VOTING MEMBERS INVITED GUESTS Ninder Johal, Black Country LEP (sub) Lara Cragg, The Black Country Consortium Ltd(sub) Alan Lunt, Dudley MBC Alison Knight, Sandwell MBC Simon Neilson, Walsall MBC 1. Apologies Stewart Towe, Black Country LEP Sarah Middleton, BC Consortium Ltd 2. Notes of Previous Meeting held on 26 June 2019 19/0049 It was resolved that: The notes of the meeting held on 26 June 2919 be confirmed as a true record. 3. Matters Arising from the notes of the previous meeting. None. 4. Declarations of Interest None. 5. Local Government (Access to Information) Act, 1985 (as amended): 19/0050 To agree that the public be excluded from the private session during consideration of Agenda Item 7 - Black Country Local Growth Deal - Very Light Rail Programme Changes 6. Black Country Local Growth Deal – A34 Corridor Development Funding (SEPPL14) – Project Withdrawal Simon Neilson was present and referred to the report previously circulated that explains the A34 Development project was approved at the March 2018 Black Country Joint Committee for a sum of £70,000 to be spent in the 2018/19 financial year. For the reasons contained in the report, following on from the approval of the project, it has been agreed that the WMCA will now fund the full scheme and this BCJC 31-7-19 – PUBLIC Draft Minutes Page 1 of 2 Development Funding is no longer required. This will create a further £70,000 capacity within the Transport element of the Growth Deal. Cllr Bird referred to ongoing conversations with Sandwell and the CWG2022. He had made it clear that the consultation for removing the fly-over is flawed. From a Black Country point of view, there are many people that use the fly-over and if 4 to 5 projects on A34 will all be running at the same time Black Country residents will be disadvantaged. Cllr Davies agreed and said there would be detrimental effect on residents and can only see that this will make it pretty but nothing else. 19/0051 It was resolved that the BCJC: approves the Accountable Body for the Growth Deal (Walsall Council) to proceed to terminate the existing Grant Agreement of £70,000 for the A34 Corridor Development Funding project from within the Growth Deal Programme 7. Black Country Local Growth Deal - Very Light Rail Programme Changes Following consideration of the confidential information in the Private Session report 19/0052 It was resolved that the BCJC: 2.1 approves the Accountable Body for the Growth Deal (Walsall Council) to proceed to terminate the existing Grant Agreement with Dudley Council to deliver the Local Growth Fund (LGF) funded elements of the Hub to Home Transport Innovation Centre and Test Track Project: Very Light Rail and Autonomous Technologies project and instructs the Accountable Body (Walsall Council) to inform Dudley Council of the decision. 2.2 approves the Accountable Body for the Growth Deal (Walsall Council) to proceed to enter into the appropriate Grant Agreement with Dudley Council to deliver the Local Growth Fund (LGF) funded elements of the Hub to Home Transport Innovation Centre and Test Track Project: Very Light Rail and Autonomous Technologies project - Development Phase, totalling £1,145,747, for works carried out during the 2017/18 and 2018/19 LGF programme periods. 2.3 notes the approval of the Black Country LEP Board held on 22 July 2019 as detailed in the Private report. An amendment was moved by Councillor Bird as Chair and duly approved in the Private Session BCJC 31-7-19 – PUBLIC Draft Minutes Page 2 of 2 ITEM 6 REPORT OF THE JOINT COMITTEE ADVISORY BOARD TO BLACK COUNTRY EXECUTIVE JOINT COMMITTEE ON 25 SEPTEMBER 2019 Black Country Local Growth Deal ULTRA LOW EMISSION VEHICLES TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENT FUNDING (SEPPL143) Grant Agreement Approval Key Decision: Yes Forward Plan: Yes 1. PURPOSE OF REPORT 1.1 To request that the Black Country Executive Joint Committee (BCJC) approves the Ultra- Low Emission Vehicles (ULEV) Transport Development Funding Project, within the Local Growth Fund (LGF) programme. 1.2 This project was endorsed by the LEP Funding Sub Group on 7 of August 2019, endorsed in principle by the Working Group on 8 August 2019, approved by the LEP Board on 20 August 2019 and ratified by the Working Group via email on the 3 September 2019. The Advisory Board endorsed the project via email on 10 September 2019. 2. RECOMMENDATIONS That the Joint Committee approves the Accountable Body for the Growth Deal (Walsall Council) to proceed to a Grant Agreement with Wolverhampton City Council, to the value of £130,000 , to deliver the Local Growth Fund (LGF) funded elements of the Ultra- Low EV Transport Development Funding Project, with delivery to commence in the 2019/20 financial year. BCJC – 25/09/19 Ultra Low Emission Vehicles Transport Development Funding Page 1 of 4 ITEM 6 3. REPORT DETAIL 3.1 The summary of the proposed project is provided below: Ultra Low EV Transport Development Funding Project - £130,000 in 2019/20 Funding Breakdown 2019/20 2020/21 Total LEP Funding £130,000 £0 £130,000 Applicants own funds £30,000 £0 £30,000 TOTAL £160,000 £0 £160,000 3.2 The UK’s transportation sector is responsible for 27% of the nation’s carbon emissions, 90% of which come from road transport. Since the introduction of the 2008 Climate Change Act, which binds the UK to 80% reduction in carbon emissions based on pre-1990 levels, the transportation carbon emissions have increased whilst other sectors have made significant reductions. 3.3 Public health impacts of air pollution have economic costs associated through increased health care costs and loss of productivity which, if left unaddressed, will continue to grow as the national population increases further exacerbating the problem. EU directives as well as national law, require that the government addresses the air pollution in urban centres, and ensures levels are kept in compliance with the law. 3.4 ULEVs are at the heart of the government’s ambitions to decarbonise the economy and form a major part within the industrial strategy linking clean growth and future mobility objectives together. ULEVs are considered as a cornerstone by which significant progress in carbon reduction and air quality improvements can be made, in line with decarbonisation of the UK’s energy mix. 3.5 The West Midlands strategic transport document, Movement for Growth, indicates the need to decarbonise transport by promoting the use of ULEV’s to deliver on two key environmental policies: ENV1 - To significantly improve the quality of the local environment in the West Midlands Metropolitan Area; ENV2 - To help tackle climate change by ensuring large decreases in greenhouse gas emissions from the West Midlands Metropolitan Area. 3.6 Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) are working closely with the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and constituent local authorities to develop a West Midlands ULEV strategy. The wider West Midlands region is a centre for research and manufacturing in the automotive industry, and promotion of ULEVs has significant potential to contribute to the local economy. BCJC – 25/09/19 Ultra Low Emission Vehicles Transport Development Funding Page 2 of 4 ITEM 6 3.7 In order to address local constraints and meet national policy objectives around climate change and local air pollution, City of Wolverhampton Council are working in collaboration across the Black Country to deliver a sub-regional wide ULEV programme that supports locally aligned objectives as established in the Black Country Core Strategy and individual council plans. The programme’s overarching focus is to support the accelerated carbon reduction across the Black Country faster than the nationally defined targets and maximise the air quality potential of the area to achieve optimum public health benefits. 3.8 Thus, the primary objective of the programme is to accelerate the uptake of Ultra low emission vehicles across the area and across all sectors through introduction of overarching policy, targeted delivery of key infrastructure, and on-going marketing and promotional work. 3.9 This bid will help to support the development costs for the initial phases of the programme as well support full business case development to support an application for larger funding opportunities via other funding bodies, such as central Government, the WMCA and through European Grants. These larger bids will be instrumental in delivering physical capital assets in the form of charging and energy infrastructure as well as smart innovation projects that will help to strengthen local economies. 4. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS All the costs associated with this proposal form part of the LGF Programme and will be covered by allocations from Government associated with this programme. This includes use of any interest accrued by the Accountable Body to cover costs associated with the delivery of Accountable Body functions, as approved by its (Walsall Council) Cabinet on the 29 th October 2014. 5. LEGAL IMPLICATIONS The appropriate Grant Agreement will be in place and will be utilised by the Accountable Body (Walsall Council), and include all conditions passed onto the LEP by Government, together with all terms, conditions, performance measures and sanctions as required by the approvals/conditions received from Government or approved by the LEP Board or the Joint Committee. 6. RISK MANAGEMENT Risk will be managed through the on-going monitoring of individual projects and their ability to deliver the required spending profiles and outcomes for the programme as required or agreed with Government and set into place by the LEP Board and the Joint Committee.