POLITICS


With the election over, it’s time for the UK to get back to business


Having been in a state of virtual shutdown for the past seven weeks, Britain’s Civil Service should be getting back to work by the time Business Network lands on members’ desks. The election behind us – congratulations to


whichever side won and we look forward to working with you – the public sector can now get on with taking forward the big agendas that the country needs to tackle. Like a sleeping giant, it can now awaken and,


driven by the new Government, with whichever mandate it holds, begin working on the hugely complex issue of making sure Britain establishes its place high on the global pecking order once the dust has settled on Brexit. Whoever is in Government, the next two years


will have a strong Brexit flavour, in one form or another - either negotiating global trade deals to replace those previously enjoyed through the EU, holding together the United Kingdom and, among others, resolving border issues in Ireland, or finding some way to secure a different public perspective on the whole Brexit issue. Either way, Brexit has to be the Government’s


main focus for at least two years. And that means the bulk of the work on


driving domestic issues could fall to new and re- elected county councillors. If Theresa May’s gamble paid off and she is


Prime Minister today, that could bode well for Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire, all three of which have worn a distinctly blue hue since May’s local elections. In Derbyshire, the Conservatives won the


overall majority. In Leicestershire the party held on to its majority. In Nottinghamshire, a coalition with the Mansfield Independents Forum, secured a working majority of mostly blue. Regardless of who is in power, there will be


new relationships between local and central Government to be forged. It could mean the three counties, and thereby the East Midlands as a whole, will receive a more favourable reception when calling on Government for support. Getting that right might be the only thing that will prevent the region’s needs and wider domestic issues from being simply shunted into the sidings. Arguably, one of the most significant local


election results simply didn’t happen in the East Midlands – that of a mayor for the combined authority. The election of Andy Street as the mayor of the West Midlands combined authority brings with it funding and power that, at present, the East Midlands doesn’t have. Ultimately, time will tell how successful the


mayoral projects will be but the failure to secure a similar devolution deal in the East Midlands will surely come under the microscope again.


24 business network June 2017 Jean-Claude Juncker


‘Negotiations with the EU will likely take up much of the focus and resource of the new Government, but we mustn’t let the local issues be sidelined during this process’


“Make no mistake, county councillors across


the East Midlands could be facing one of the toughest challenges ever in local politics,” said Scott Knowles, the Chamber’s Chief Executive. “While we congratulate all the councillors who


have either won or held seats we don’t envy them the task ahead. We’re entering one of the most important times in recent history for UK politics, and as elected representatives, their task ahead has arguably never been more difficult, nor more important,” “Negotiations with the EU will likely take up


much of the focus and resource of the new Government, but we mustn’t let the local issues be sidelined during this process. “Even the best Brexit deal in the world will


mean nothing if local businesses and communities are hampered by poor planning, low investment and catch-all national policy- making that doesn’t allow for local sensitivities. “There is a raft of domestic issues that will


impact the East Midlands, and it will be up to our regional representatives to make sure they remain high profile and high priority. “A strong and functional relationship between


communities, councillors, MPs and Government will be at the heart of ensuring this can happen.” Regionally, key issues that the Chamber says


Much of Downing Street's focus will be on Brexit for next two years


need to be championed include HS2, electrification of the Midland Main Line, improvements to the Derby-Stoke-on-Trent- Crewe rail link, rolling out of superfast broadband to all businesses and residences and driving the growth of digital technology, helping our world-leading carbon neutral and affordable energy sectors, encouraging entrepreneurialism, devolution and supporting local companies that want to start exporting or find new overseas markets. “But by far the biggest issue that needs to be


addressed, and we would urge all county councillors to put their thinking caps on to come up with a solution to it, is closing the skills gap – the chasm between the skills school, college and university leavers offer and what employers at all levels need, including soft skills such as answering the telephone and solving problems,” Scott said. Before the General Election, the Chamber


predicted that the new Government would be judged ultimately on five key criteria. Brexit and securing trade deals with the EU,


Commonwealth and other countries and trading blocs would be just one of them. But a high priority must be ensuring momentum on domestic issues is not lost during EU negotiations.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60