Idea behind Investment Zones isn’t new but planning powers need to be delegated - Lord Kirkhope

Of course, anything that provides our region with opportunities to improve the lives and the economy of our citizens is to be welcomed but we have, of course, been here before.

When I was working as a Parliamentary Private Secretary in the Dept of the Environment in the late 1980s my boss, David, now Sir David Trippier was the Minister who deployed our plan establishing Development Corporations in a large number of locations including in Leeds and Sheffield aimed at encouraging the enhancement and investment needed in particularly deprived areas.

These Corporations succeeded beyond our expectations, as uniquely they held delegated Planning powers, which enabled them to move quickly and decisively in getting improvements in place.

The ratio between Public and Private Investment in those areas was notable. In Sheffield, for instance, the Government put up £100m, the EU gave over £7m but the Private Investors supported the scheme with over £600m.

The benefits of Development Corporations are still being enjoyed some 25 years later. But the key to their success was the Planning powers being in the hands of the Corporation not the Local Authority.

There was a reluctance by Councils, including Leeds, at that time, to lose influence and control, but ultimately the speed of the changes under a different regime convinced them and the Government sensibly ensured a strong Local Authority representation on the various boards.

I was personally sorry when the Planning powers for those areas and similarly deprived areas were returned to Local Government and inevitably the delays and regulatory complications which then ensued. Personally, I still think our model was the right one for that time but also for now.

I have looked carefully at later Government initiatives designed to lift regional economies. We have had Enterprise Zones, Freeports (Mark 1) (1980s), Freeports Mark 2, Urban and Rural Development Grants from the EU (when we were still in the EU), various economic programmes with Acronyms that I cannot still remember, and Environmental Improvement monies including to rural and farming interests favouring those in marginal areas.

What has been missing in all these plans so far has been a freeing up of decision making with enough encouragement for new investment. Having lost our EU monies, which in themselves provided tangible economic betterment in our region, the pledge by the Government to fill the void has not yet materialised.

So will this latest proposal of Investment Zones work? It sounds interesting but it does not seem to be fully thought through.

Apparently, environmental considerations in development are to be marginalised which will in itself cause much local controversy; the Planning Authority remains in Local Government hands but in hands that will be tied. That may cause unhappiness in local communities. And in a period of great economic pressure the hope for a huge new private Investment programme will of course need more than just encouragement.

Investors need to know that not only will they be able to get a good return on their Investments but that bureaucracy and regulations will be relaxed. It is possible for the claimed gains to be realised but, as in all plans of this kind, the communities affected must also be positively engaged.

We are already seeing signs of resistance to proposals for solar farms on good agricultural land which must surely seem to most people to be an aberration when there are so many rooftops and so much ‘brown’ land available to be used.

These new Investment Zones must not only be carefully selected but the support of communities affected must also be obtained.

Luckily in the case of Development Corporations they were largely appreciated and went out of their way to involve local communities and their representatives in the decisions they took.

The chair of the Leeds DC Peter Hartley was well chosen as a businessman who understood the need to involve and communicate. Other chairs were equally well appointed.

To proceed with the Investment Zone proposals the Government must ensure that the right people are given leading roles in the deployment of resources and the encouragement of potential investors. This must not become another ‘jobs for the boys’ situation.

The new PM Liz Truss has decided on a Policy of ‘Dash for Growth’. The term ‘Levelling Up’ has been set aside. We in the North know that too often far from benefiting us these policies inevitably end up making London and the South richer while we move forward at a slower pace.

Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate is the former MP for Leeds North East and MEP for Yorkshire.