County councils call for swift abolition of Local Enterprise Partnerships

Government plans to abolish Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) should be swift in order to equip local leaders with the powers to help them close the economic growth gap between rural and urban areas, the County Councils Network (CCN) has said.

In response to a report by EY commissioned by the CCN, the network said that abolition of LEPs would finally give county councils the same powers that some city areas with mayors already enjoy as a result of devolution deals.

LEPs are 'business-led' partnerships between local authorities and local private sector businesses.

They help determine local economic priorities and undertake activities to drive economic growth in their region and are led by boards that comprise local leaders of industry, educational institutions and the public sector.

The pledge to abolish LEPs was first made by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in his Spring Budget. Hunt said it was part of a commitment to "empowering democratically elected local leaders at every opportunity".

He noted that the Government intended for the functions of LEPs to be delivered by local government in the future.

The CCN said it has "long argued" that the Government should abolish LEPs as there is too much duplication between both delivering skills programmes and major infrastructure. It also noted that there were lingering questions about their democratic legitimacy and effectiveness.

The EY report concluded that county councils are "well positioned and capable of energising and amplifying economic growth responsibilities through the transition of LEP functions to local Government".

But it warned that the Government must set out a clear and decisive position this month with a policy framework for LEPs transitioning functions to upper-tier local authorities.

CCN said if LEPs continue to function without any democratic legitimacy and mandate after April 2024, "a patchwork governance structure and picture of business support will begin to emerge which will benefit no-one".

It added: "Government must be decisive. One County Authority has a LEP which intends to continue as a not-for-profit private company, having followed guidance to incorporate. If the LEP loses core funding and their strategic role for Government, they will become one of a number of businesses in an already competitive market — with the obvious impacts on procurement costs."

Commenting on the report, Cllr Tim Oliver, County Councils Network Chairman, said: "The government's 'minded to' indication that it was to abolish LEPs and transfer them to local authorities was long overdue. The process had already slowly begun in parts of England with LEPs being subsumed into city areas with mayors and devolution deals, leading to a piecemeal approach where some councils have greater powers than others."

He added: "For too long, councils in county areas have been hamstrung in their ability to drive economic growth lacking the powers enjoyed by urban and city authorities with mayors. As today's economic analysis shows, growth in those areas far outstrips county locations, with our rural areas only bouncing back to pre-pandemic output five years after the event.

"We need all the tools in our armoury to try and close the gap, and LEP functions would be another string to our economic growth bow."

Adam Carey