a) - Employment and earnings
- Key trends and looking forward
- Unemployment/worklessness
b) - How we can promote a more inclusive economy
Minutes:
The Chair welcomed the Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity and reminded Members that the Panel would be inviting three further Leads from the remaining strategic areas of Housing, Finance and Environmental Health to explore their service in more detail and how it fits in with the Poverty Strategy Action Plan.
The panel received a detailed presentation which started with the relationship between poverty and economic performance. Key aspects highlighted in the presentation included:
· Poverty is not the same as having a low income;
· Fixed costs are important;
· The South West is unique in being the only region with above average house prices but below average wages;
· Being able to access a decent well paid job is a key determinant of quality of life and wider wellbeing.
The Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity outlined some key elements highlighting that East Devon had a higher proportion of part-time workers than the South West (36.3%) and the UK (32.4%). Two of the largest employment sectors were agricultural and the seasonal visitor/tourism sector which were characterised by low average salary levels.
Members noted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic during 2020.
This included a number of companies either going into administration or experiencing large scale job losses such as:
· Exeter Airport
· Flybe
· Shauls Bakery
· Shearings Holidays
· Devon Cliffs
He outlined some potential opportunities to support economic recovery to ensure opportunities were available across the district to continue to improve tourism and hospitality and referred to Objective 3 of the Anti-Poverty Strategy Action Plan. This sought to promote an inclusive economy by raising skills and improving access to a range of employment opportunities for people on low incomes. A range of activity was identified in the draft action plan to help to realise this objective.
Discussion included the following points by members outside of the panel:
· Poverty levels and economic prosperity depends upon the driving forces within it. Reference was made to a lecture by Mark Carney which had considered the points of economic value and social value and how high fixed costs compared to low income resulted in debt;
· Quality of employment was an important factor;
· Clarification sought on whether the GDP figures show what proportion of people working in Exeter and living in East Devon. In response the Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity advised that care was needed in terms of interpreting the statistics and particularly whether they were measured by work place or place of residence. Commuting to and from relatively well paid employment in Exeter had a significant influence on large parts of the District;
· Reports show that there is a significant proportion of in work poverty including families with children. This was considered to be a national disgrace. The importance of engaging local MPs in helping to address this issue was also highlighted;
· Concerns were raised about the structural shift in retail and the need to make sure our local towns prosper and to make sure our shops thrive by encouraging rents to stabilise so that shops can continue trading. Members noted that landlord rents and business rates were an issue that needed to be addressed on a national stage.
Discussion included the following points by panel members:
· Members thanked the Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity for an excellent presentation;
· Statistics showed that in the UK there were 56% of working families in poverty compared to 39% 20 years ago. Clarification was sought on whether there were statistics for East Devon as data shows the majority of people in poverty were actually in work. In response the Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity agreed that there was a generational shift and that families increasingly have to have two jobs. The rising number of people in in work poverty was a significant issue and he advised that he would investigate what data was available and send these statistics to members;
· A recent survey showed the average tourist in Exmouth only spent £16 per head. A suggestion was made that if tourists were not spending the money we would need to look at bringing other forms of employment into the area, especially as low paid seasonal jobs were affecting the community. In response the Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity advised of the importance of having a diverse economy that is able to perform well in many areas. There is a challenge for our coastal towns to raise spend. He highlighted East Devon Excellence as an example of a private sector led initiative designed to showcase best practice across the full breadth of the tourism sector and more widely such as food and drink;
· The need to look at higher paid employment;
· A suggestion was made to find out where the retail hot spots were to help find out what was going on in communities. In response it was advised the council was currently looking at footfall and local spend and advised Members about a funding source that was available called the ‘Reopening High Streets Safely Fund’;
· Clarification was sought on whether the council had employees on a zero hour contract. This would be checked and the answer reported back to Members;
· Reference was made that Overview Committee had considered the use of digital technology in the high street;
· Digital inclusion was important. In response the Service Lead for Growth, Development and Prosperity referred to digital support programmes run by Cosmic. Digital inclusion was also an area highlighted in the action plan;
· Concerns were raised about the need to look at improving skills and to unlock employment sites and reference was made to specific grants.