The Chamberlain News

City leader’s pledge: Brexit won’t stun us into inactivity – Birmingham is open for business

City council leader John Clancy issued a “Birmingham is open for business” pledge today following the Brexit referendum decision.

Cllr Clancy said Birmingham refused to sit still and would not be “stunned into inactivity”.

He is to establish a Brexit working group to advise the council on the Government’s emerging Brexit strategy. He said:

This group will engage key players – both city council staff and partners across the city and beyond – and we will work together to ensure Birmingham gets the best possible deal.

The council leader warned during the referendum campaign that a decision to pull Britain out of the EU would be bad for Birmingham and put the city’s economic recovery at risk. Foreign investors were already delaying decisions to come to Birmingham, he stated.

Today, Cllr Clancy said:

With the aftershocks still clearly being felt across the world, it will be some time before the dust settles following last week’s historic Brexit vote. But, amidst all the uncertainty, let me make one thing clear: Birmingham is not sitting still and we are not being stunned into inactivity.

I made it clear during the referendum campaign that our city has historically benefitted from EU membership and I stand by my comments. But the electorate has spoken and my job now is to get the best possible deal for the people and communities of our great city.

The council leader met with chief executive Mark Rogers and strategic director for major projects Paul Dransfield this morning to discuss the way forward. Cllr Clancy added:

We’re not exactly starting from scratch.

This is already an international city with strong links to a host of major cities, including ,  and , , and  in Germany, ,  and .

to our city, when we discussed investment opportunities and I recently joined the leaders of cities from across the world for the C. The point I’m making is that we were looking at global opportunities long before the Brexit vote.

And let’s not pretend we’ve just announced our divorce from Europe. Even with Brexit, it is essential that we continue to participate in the 

Now of course the landscape is changing and post-Brexit negotiations must take into account the needs of our cities. They must also reflect the opportunities for growth and job creation offered by places like Birmingham, Manchester, Bristol and others.

Cllr Clancy called for devoluition to gather pace and said the West Midlands Combined Authority would have a bigger role to play because cities and regions would drive the post-Brexit economy.

He added:

Now is the time to invest in our cities and the leave campaign made it clear that there would be net gains if we voted to leave the EU, so it is only reasonable for any post-Brexit government to replace funding that might otherwise have come to cities like Birmingham via Europe.

In return we will create the growth. We will invest in jobs and skills and we will build much needed homes. We will ensure that the benefits of ongoing investment are felt in every community across Birmingham’s 40 wards.

Last week’s vote, and indeed the whole referendum campaign, highlighted divisions across the country. You can clearly see splits in families, communities, towns and cities. But the referendum is over now and we must heal the divisions that have emerged. We must do what Birmingham has always done and unite for the good of the whole city.

I’m proud to live in a city where communities come together regardless of race, faith or sexuality. Now, more than ever, we must continue to oppose those who seek to divide us.

A debate on the implications of Brexit for Birmingham will be held at the next city council meeting.

The Liberal Democrat group has tabled a motion that sets out EU funding now at risk and also raises concerns about the increase in racist attacks following the Brexit vote.

The motion says the council and the city should work together to lobby the government to replace EU funding that is likely to be withdrawn.

And it calls for the council to work with others to protect community cohesion .