Agenda item

RESOLVED that the Tax Site Gateway Policy be approved and delegated authority be given to officers to sign the policy on behalf of the Council to allow the Tax Site within the District’s administrative boundary to proceed.

Executive considered a detailed report, presented by the Portfolio Holder for Growth, which provided an update on the proposals for a Tax Site Gateway Policy for the East Midlands Investment Zone (EMIZ) in the context of proposals for a Tax Site within the Council’s administrative boundary.

Following its formal constitution in March 2024, the East Midlands Mayoral County Combined Authority (EMMCCA) became the accountable body for the EMIZ and were the responsible body for obtaining Government approval for the EMIZ proposals.

In April 2024, Executive resolved to support the proposals for the East Midlands

Investment Zone on behalf of the Council noting the opportunities that would arise from this significant amount of inward investment planned for the region.

The report allowed Members to consider whether the Council should approve, and thereby, become a signatory to the proposed Tax Site Gateway Policy to allow the Tax Site to proceed. It outlined how the draft Tax Site Gateway Policy ('the Policy’) would be used to ensure that Tax Sites in the EMIZ and the associated tax incentives would promote and encourage the growth of the advance manufacturing sector and green industries within the region.

Moved by Councillor John Ritchie and seconded by Councillor Duncan McGregor

RESOLVED that the Tax Site Gateway Policy be approved and delegated authority be given to officers to sign the policy on behalf of the Council to allow the Tax Site within the District’s administrative boundary to proceed.

Reasons for Recommendation

In summary, the report outlined how the draft Tax Site Gateway Policy ('the Policy’) would be used to ensure that Tax Sites in the EMIZ and the associated tax incentives would promote and encourage the growth of the advance manufacturing sector and green industries within the region.

Therefore, the Policy was considered likely to facilitate the creation of higher skilled, higher paid jobs at two large employment sites within the local area with an associated rise in living standards and improved quality of life for those employees. Moreover, the Tax Site at Explore Park was already operational, had plans for further development in the near term and was closely related to settlements and housing allocations within the District.

In those respects, the focus in the Policy on green industries and advance manufacturing at Explore Park supported the growth in the District’s housing supply alongside the opportunity to transform the District’s local economy through accelerating the growth of existing businesses in those sectors and by securing investment from those sectors to develop employment sites in the District to provide more high quality, high value jobs to local people.

As proposed, the draft Policy did not give rise to any significant costs to the Council and any future planning decisions or proposals for business rates relief and/or tax incentives, or any other scheme that had a material impact on the District’s own statutory responsibilities would need the Council’s prior approval.

As the billing authority, the Council would likely administer any business rates relief under the tax incentive policy at Explore Park if that were to be applied to any future occupants of any new buildings on the part of the site within Bolsover. Reliefs would be appropriately reimbursed by Government under a principle of no detriment.

Consequently, approval of the draft Policy would be highly unlikely to pose any significant negative risk to the Council’s own interests or impact on service delivery but there was a positive risk that the EMIZ would benefit the District’s local economy and its local residents.

It was therefore considered appropriate to recommend that the Executive endorse approval of the Tax Site Gateway Policy and for the Council to thereby become a signatory to the Policy and in doing so allow the Tax Site at Explore Park, Steetley to proceed

Alternative Options and Reasons for Rejection

The Executive could choose not to support the current Policy proposals and withdraw officers from any future involvement in its governance arrangements or decisions making. This option was rejected because of the potential benefits to the District of continued active involvement with EMMCCA and the EMIZ, the risk of not realising benefits for the District if officers disengaged from the process, and the disbenefits of the loss of inward investment should the Policy and associated Tax Sites fail to get approval.

Councillor John Ritchie left the meeting.