The West Midlands is finely balanced politically. Our region has 28 MPs, 14 Labor and 14 Conservative. Of the local authorities whose leaders form the West Midlands Combined Authority board which I chair, four are Labor (Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Birmingham, and Coventry) and three are Conservative (Walsall, Dudley, and Solihull).
These elections did not alter the arithmetic, although there was voter apathy within our base if not outright vote switching.
Post local elections, how do we best steady the ship and advance? I suggest three key ingredients. First, we should recognize the rationale underpinning the green agenda. Here in the West Midlands we have committed to becoming a net zero region by 2041.
Before readers roll their eyes and label me a tree hugger, remember this is about pounds, shillings and pence as much as environmentalism. The long-term solution to cost of living pressures lies in initiatives like retrofitting homes which will cut household bills.
The well paid, high skill jobs of the future will be found in fast growing sectors like green manufacturing. The political case is clear.
Geopolitics has spurred us to bolster our energy security and a recent Onward report suggested we could lose 1.3 million ‘green voters’ if the government abandons net zero. Look at Conservative-led Solihull Council – where the Green Party are the official opposition – to see that green minded voters are an important segment of our base.
Second, let’s double down on Leveling Up. Our relative electoral resilience in the West Midlands illustrates that this agenda has borne fruit.
With Trailblazer Devolution Deal conversations underground, I encourage the Government to be bold and brave in their Leveling Up Bill to be unveiled in The Queen’s Speech. From transport to housing, skills to regeneration, we have already drawn in unprecedented investment.
In terms of transport, we are working on new stations and rolling out zero emissions buses. We have doubled housebuilding pre-pandemic and cleaned up eyesore sites, transforming them into new communities and job opportunities for local people. This includes iconic Longbridge – the long shuttered car manufacturing plant now being entirely regenerated.
We’re training our workforce and improving qualifications through programs enabled by the devolution of the Adult Education Budget. Whether it’s £1billion of town center investment in Dudley, pioneering homelessness reduction in Walsall or rapidly issuing rebates to help with energy costs in Solihull, we make the Leveling Up slogan meaningful.
Boris: take Leveling Up to the next level. It will deliver electoral dividends and is the right thing to do.
Third, leadership matters. Trust in politicians feels at quite a low ebb currently. When the bond of trust with the public is frayed, we must work hard to repair that and focus on delivering for the country.
This week’s local election results show a measure of resilience and certainly don’t demonstrate an outpouring of affection for Labor – so let’s get on with the job.
If we deliver, the voters will reward us.
* Andy Street is Conservative Mayor of the West Midlands