The property industry should be greatly encouraged by the recent showing at MIPIM UK.
I spoke at the Investors Lunch on the first day and it was very encouraging to meet so many investors, both domestic and overseas, seeking to invest in property projects throughout the UK. And it was very good to see so many of our UK cities there in strength, as my team and I did a tour of most of the stands (sincere apologies to those we didn’t manage to reach) looking at the models, plans and CGIs, and talking to Britain’s civic and business leaders gathered there.
Investors I spoke to were consistent: they are looking for strong local leadership and want to invest their funds alongside government investment. I was able to tell them that the Growth Deals and City Deals I have negotiated allow precisely such an opportunity.
Growing confidence
MIPIM’s decision to come to the UK, in partnership with Estates Gazette, was shrewd. Virtually all the UK cities, towns and counties were represented, and 80% of the participants had never visited MIPIM before. It underlined a growing self-confidence on the part of our regional centres; an appetite from investors to go beyond London; and a sense of optimism in the foundations of growth in the UK economy. I will use my role in government to do everything I can to encourage this momentum, with further deals between the government and cities, towns and counties and promotion of the opportunities the UK offers.
One commentator described MIPIM UK as “the devolution show”, and I took this as a big vote of confidence in our policy to devolve power and resources from Whitehall into our towns and cities.
The devolution message was taken up again, just a few days later, with the launch of the RSA City Growth Commission report. After a year of deliberation, Jim O’Neill and his able team came up with a series of challenging but, in the main, sensible recommendations. The report was immediately embraced by the RICS (with Amanda Clack, senior vice-president of the RICS speaking at the launch, alongside Lord Heseltine and leader of Manchester city council Richard Leese).
One of the report’s key recommendations was that devolution to cities should not be required to go at the speed of the slowest. And as if then to hammer home this point, George Osborne made an important announcement last week concerning more powers for Greater Manchester, which seems to have been very well received.
Greater Manchester will create a democratically accountable city region mayor, who will be highly visible and whose decisions will be scrutinised in detail both by the existing Greater Manchester Combined Authority and by his or her electorate. In turn, we will divert certain powers from Whitehall to that individual and to the GMCA to give them the powers they need to make a real difference to the lives of their citizens.
New powers for Manchester
So Manchester will receive further powers on transport, housing and planning, plus support for business growth and to join up health and social care budgets. This will create strong political leadership that can drive through policy to stimulate economic growth and plan strategically on a regional, national and international level. And this in turn will present major new opportunities for property investors, who will want to back places on the rise.
There is a saying that “cities can’t wait”. I am determined to ensure they won’t have to.
Greg Clark is minister of state for universities, science and cities
