Lobbying

Property Owner BIDs

At present, in the UK only BIDs in London can establish PO BIDs. This is because there is a legal requirement that, in order to do so, a Supplementary Business Rate (SBR) must be in existence. Currently Crossrail is the only SBR in effect in the UK.

PO BIDs exist most notably in the US and Germany and have been very successful in unlocking private sector investment, major capital projects and, in turn, generating economic growth.

In Hamburg, PO BIDs have generated c€40m in direct investment from property owners. Hamburg’s Neuer Wall PO BID also secured further private investment in 60% of the areas privately owned commercial properties. This saw property values increase by 24% between 2010 and 2013, a 67 percentage point increase in foreign direct investment and a 225% increase in commercial rental values within the PO BID area.

The two PO BIDs in London demonstrate an appetite for PO BIDs in the UK; 96% of property owners in the Heart of London voted in favour of their PO BID, likewise the New West End Company PO BID secured 96% support from Property Owners on their BID Ballot. These will raise a minimum of c£25m in private investment and underline the strategic impact this model can have on economic growth.

NBG believes that allowing cities outside London to establish PO BIDs without having in place a SBR would lead to significant further investment and economic growth in the countries major cities. Beyond this, granting this right would be a clear cost and risk-to-government free opportunity to give real force to the Northern Powerhouse.

Public Realm as Infrastructure

Public realm, or as the Crowne Estate refers to it in relation to Regent Street ‘the bits between the buildings’, is both a prerequisite and a catalyst for economic growth. As such, NBG believes that public realm is infrastructure in the same way as bridges, roads and railways are.

NBG believes that public realm should qualify as infrastructure in government funding terms and is producing evidence of the direct economic impact of such investment to present to government.

Inward Investment, International Trade and Infrastructure

NBG believes, particularly post Brexit, that its member cities need to do more than ever before to focus resources on inward investment, international trade and transport infrastructure. It is doing this by making the case to central government, local authorities and the organisations that are directly responsible for these matters. In addition to this, working directly with its c8,000 business members, NBG is continually building its networks to facilitate more investment and trade.