Issue - meetings

Alwen Williams (Interim CJC Chief Executive), Ian Bancroft (Chief Executive, Wrexham County Borough Council) and Neal Cockerton (Chief Executive, Flintshire County Council) to present the report.

DECISION:  

To accept the report.

The report was submitted by Alwen Williams, Interim Chief Executive of the CJC.

RESOLVED to accept the report.

DISCUSSION

The report was a joint one between the Chief Executive of Wrexham County Borough Council, the Chief Executive of Flintshire County Council and the Interim Chief Executive of the CJC. It was reported that the purpose of the report was to provide the latest information on the progress of the new Investment Zone in Flintshire and Wrexham which focused on Advanced Manufacturing. It was highlighted that the Investment Zone focused on investments in Flintshire and Wrexham but was expected to have wider beneficial impacts across the north.

It was reported that good progress was being made on the development of Porth 2 and that the draft Porth 2 document had been prepared for formal review by the Government. It was noted that Porth 3 would follow at the end of November once Porth 2 had been approved.

It was noted that the report provided an overview of proposed Tax Sites and clarified that the Investment Zone could have three Tax Sites, up to 200ha each. Reference was made to part 5 of the report detailing the Tax Sites and their benefits, noting that there was potential to support more than 6,400 new jobs. It was noted that a further report with more details and a summary of the opportunity would follow once further work had been undertaken.

The delivery structure and resources of the Investment Zone Team were mentioned, and reference made to the example of the proposed team structure set out in part 9.4 of the report.

The Interim Chief Executive of the CJC was thanked for the update and presentation, noting that the report was comprehensive. Thanks were also expressed to the two Local Authorities working together, noting that this was an important element and gratitude was expressed to the authors of the report.

It was stated that the work seemed to be moving forward quickly and pride was expressed in what had been achieved to date. It was believed that there was good interaction with the Welsh Government and the UK Government to drive the plan forward, this was identified as being both positive and necessary.

It was a pleasure to see that the Warren Hall site was included in the report and there was delight that something was now being done here. The development was declared an exciting piece of work; it was noted that the aspect of job creation and the aspects of economic growth were huge and something to be proud of.