Agenda and draft minutes

To approve the minutes of the last meeting of the Board.

The minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 17 June 2024 were approved by the Board.

Members are asked to declare any disclosable pecuniary or affected interests in respect of any matter to be considered at this meeting.

Any Member with a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in a matter should withdraw from the meeting when the matter is under consideration and should notify the Democratic Services Officer in attendance that they are withdrawing as they have such an interest. If the Disclosable Pecuniary Interest is not entered on the register of Members interests the Monitoring Officer must be notified of the interest within 28 days.

Any Member with an Affected Interest in a matter must disclose the interest to the meeting.  There is no requirement to withdraw from the meeting when the interest is only an affected interest, but the Monitoring Officer should be notified of the interest, if not previously notified of it, within 28 days of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

The Chair drew attention to the need to identify potential conflicts of interest in advance of the meeting as all six authorities needed to be present for there to be a quorum. He therefore suggested that if anyone was to have an interest in the future, they should bring a substitute to step in for the relevant item to avoid being inquorate.

Any other items which, pursuant to Section 100B(4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972, the Chair decides are urgent.

There were no urgent items of business.

To provide an update on the establishment of the Business Advisory Board.

The Board discussed the establishment of the Business Advisory Board which it was intended would report to this Board. Membership was to be drawn from Berkshire's key industrial sectors, such as life sciences and agritech, creative and screen industries, IT and digital, visitor economy, retail and hospitality (high streets), and developers and construction. The Board should comprise between 15 and 20 members with five seats reserved for business representative organisations, with a seat each for the Berkshire LEP, Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce, University of Reading, further education colleges and Federation of Small Businesses. It was to meet quarterly. The first meeting was to be held in the week commencing 25 November 2024.

Nigel Lynn highlighted a number of key points in the report which had been circulated. He indicated that the government guidance stressed that it should provide a strong business voice. He outlined the approaches adopted by other areas which had been taken into account in developing the proposals for Berkshire’s business board.

Amongst the points made were that:

·       The period of membership was a matter for the Board, but three years had applied elsewhere with the possibility of an extension thereafter.

·       There may be a need to reconsider the details once established in the light of experience.

·       Commitment from the people on the Business Advisory Board would be key.

·       Some councils already had an existing forum for business.

The Board endorsed the following proposals as set out in the report:

·       The Board should comprise between 15 and 20 members;

·       Five seats should be reserved for business representative organisations, with a seat each for the Berkshire LEP, Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce, University of Reading, further education colleges and Federation of Small Businesses.

·       The Board should meet quarterly.

·       The first meeting was to be held in the week commencing 25 November 2024.

To brief the Board on the proposed response to an invitation from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to express an interest in the emerging devolution proposals.

The Board received a report advising it of the letter to be sent to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) in response to their invitation to express an interest in devolution. It had indicated that the six authorities were well-positioned to begin formal discussions with the government on the most effective devolution model for Berkshire to benefit the county and the wider UK.

It was also proposed that the expression of interest should be accompanied by a statement emphasising Berkshire's significance to the national economy, its strengths, areas for growth and development, and the barriers that needed to be overcome. The Board agreed that the final wording of the letter and statement should be agreed with the Chair of the Prosperity Board in consultation with all Berkshire Leaders.

Councillor Terry advised that there were strong indications that deals were being done with those establishing mayors. Those opting not to pursue a mayoral arrangement were likely to be a lower priority. Councillor Smith suggested that a strong economic case may attract the government’s attention even if Berkshire did not want a mayor.

Subject to seeing the letter, the Board endorsed the proposal.

To receive an update on the Berkshire Economic Strategy.

The Board received an update on the development of the Berkshire Economic Strategy.

The Board was reminded that the purpose of the strategy was to drive productivity, prosperity and economic growth across the county. Alison Webster stressed the importance of linking the Strategy to the work on devolution. She stressed that the message from government was that economic growth was required to fund the improvements it was hoping to deliver. Growth was at the heart of rebuilding Great Britain. She also referred to the four headline themes:

Theme 1. Berkshire’s Economic Performance

Theme 2. Berkshire’s businesses

Theme 3. Berkshire’s people

Theme 4. Berkshire’s business environment

She also outlined the data that was being used to inform the strategy, including the consultation responses. The importance of an action plan to ensure that the strategy actually delivered what was intended was also stressed.

Amongst the points made were that:

·       Consideration needed to be given as to how the Business Advisory Board would be engaged in the consultation.

·       Innovation and research and development should be key.

·       The Business Advisory Board would have a key role in delivering the strategy.

·       The strategy would provide a good starting point for discussions with business.

The Board noted progress, particularly that the final version of the Strategy was to be presented to it on 16 December for endorsement, and endorsed the following:

·       The proposed consultation timetable.

·       That the four-week public consultation should commence on 22 October 2024.

·       That the main consultation event should take place either on 8 or 15 November.

Alison Webster followed up the report with a brief summary of the state of the Berkshire economy. A detailed briefing was to be circulated to the Board.

To note that the next meeting of the Board will be held at 12 noon on Monday 16 December 2024.

The Board noted that its next meeting would be held at 12 noon on Monday 16 December 2024 in Slough.