Biggest MDC yet lined up for Birmingham

Timed alongside the confirmation that the government’s Regional Investment Summit will be held in the city on 21 October, the Mayoral Development Corporation is intended to accelerate priority regeneration areas.

West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker, alongside the Leader of Birmingham City Council John Cotton, announced the launch of the UK’s largest MDC yesterday.

It will incorporate the £3bn Birmingham Sports Quarter, the £4bn Birmingham Knowledge Quarter, the HS2 station at Curzon Street, the £2bn Smithfield development being led by Lendlease, and a major creative industries hub in Digbeth.

MDCs are statutory bodies, set up by a Mayor, designed to speed up development and attract investment within a specific area. They can take on broad powers including land acquisition, planning and infrastructure functions.

Birmingham’s MDC will be part of a wider Mayoral Development Zone.

In Andy Burnham-led Greater Manchester, the MDC model has had a major impact on areas such as Stockport, centred around driving forward town centre living on brownfield sites. The Stockport MDC has been expanded this month.

Buoyed by Stockport’s story, GMCA is keen to roll the model out, in areas such as the Old Trafford regeneration zone, proposed Manchester United new-build and all. In the north of GM’s orbit, the Atom Valley Mayoral Development Zone stretches into three boroughs and includes specific MDC areas such as Northern Gateway.

Announcement of the Birmingham MDC came with Chancellor Rachel Reeves firing the starting gun on the heavily-trailed Regional Investment Summit, pledging that “no region will be locked out of investment”.

The summit will bring together business leaders and major investors with policymakers, regulators, regional mayors and other local leaders to showcase the breadth and depth of opportunities to invest, expand and create jobs right across the UK.

As the Labour government looks to build on its 10-year strategies across infrastructure and industry, the summit is intended to highlight regional investment opportunities in areas such as housing, infrastructure, AI and energy.

The chancellor said: “Under this government no region will be locked out of investment.

“Business confidence is at its highest level since 2015, private sector activity expanded at the fastest pace in a year in August, and top CFOs have ranked the UK as the top investment destination in the world.

“Our opponents want to talk down Britain’s economy. But whilst the economy isn’t broken, for many it feels stuck, which is why I’m determined to attract more investment into every region of the UK so we can build an economy that works for, and rewards, working people.”

Backed by major corporations including Eon, Lloyds, KPMG, HSBC and IBM, the summit will be hosted in Birmingham on Tuesday 21 October, and will be co-hosted by the Chancellor, the Business and Trade Secretary, and West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker, who said:

“The first Regional Investment Summit is a chance to show the world the strength of the West Midlands and all our regions – we are brimming with opportunities for investors.

“This summit is about putting our ideas, our people, our opportunities and our businesses on the map – and I’m excited to welcome partners from the globe to see first-hand why the West Midlands is the place to invest.”