Birmingham Economic Review 2023

A comprehensive analysis of the city's economy

The Birmingham Economic Review is an annual publication written by the University of Birmingham City-REDI in partnership with the GBCC.

The Birmingham Economic Review will assess the city’s capabilities for innovation and adaptation, the potential of its resident workforce, the major transport and infrastructure projects on the horizon, how we can achieve inclusive and more ecologically sustainable growth in economic recovery, and opportunities ahead to enhance the attractiveness of the city to visitors and investors.

This year’s report will provide a comprehensive analysis of the city’s economy as it emerges from the coronavirus pandemic into a period of high inflation and uncertainty caused by the energy crisis and labour market pressures, and actionable measures that businesses and stakeholders from across the city-region can take to adapt, foster resilience, and grow in this challenging environment. It will also consider priorities and opportunities for levelling up.

The review will provide world-class, data-driven academic insights and experienced advice from some of the city’s most prominent business leaders as to how the region and its businesses can seize new and emerging opportunities on the horizon.

This launch event will feature an overview of the main findings of the report, followed by a high-profile panel of business, policy and political leaders providing their views on the city-region and the findings of the research. They will then participate in a Q&A discussion with the audience.

Chair:

Deborah Leary OBE D.Univ,FRSA,CCMI, President, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce

Deborah is CEO and Founder of Forensic Pathways an international consultancy and technology design company specialising in the development of innovative technologies for the criminal, threat intelligence and business intelligence arena.

Throughout its 22-year history the Company has won numerous awards for innovation and business; appointed Export Champion in 2017, voted one of the Midlands top 50 innovation companies in 2017 and 2019 and in 2018 was presented with a Board of Trade Award by the Secretary of State for International Trade.

Deborah is an international motivational speaker and consultant on entrepreneurship, international trade, innovation and corporate social responsibility. In 2022 she was made a Visiting Professor of Aston University and in addition holds an Honorary Doctorate from Birmingham City University.  In 2008 she was presented with the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for Entrepreneurship and the Community.

She has won numerous awards for business and innovation including International Businesswoman of the Year, International Women Entrepreneur of the Year, European Woman of Achievement and British Female Inventor of the Year.  She has been nominated as Thought Leader of the Year 2023, to be announced in October.

Deborah holds several Board positions outside of her responsibilities as CEO of Forensic Pathways.

• President of Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce
• Board Member Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce
• Executive Board of the Greater Birmingham Global Chamber of Commerce
• West Midlands Innovation Board Member
• Visiting Professor, Aston University Business School
• Advisory Board – Aston Institute for Forensic Linguistics
• Business Advisory Board – Birmingham City University, Business School
• Advisory Board Member of the United Nations Global Compact UK Network
• Honorary Chair for the Organisation for Women in Trade (OWIT)
• Business Board Member - All Parliamentary Party Working Group on Women & Enterprise
• Co-Chair Business Committee, Midland Met Hospital Campaign
• Co-Chair Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, Good Business Forum
• Fundraiser for Pans Pandas a UK charity established to support children affected by these conditions

Speakers:

Keynote: Saqib Bhatti, Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party for Business

Saqib Bhatti is the Conservative MP for Meriden, the Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party for Business, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee in Parliament and a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport. He previously held Parliamentary Private Secretary roles for both the Department for International Trade and the Department for Health. Prior to his political career, he was a chartered accountant and President of the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. Until his election on 12 December 2019, Saqib was the youngest-ever President of the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce acting as a voice for over 3,000 businesses in the West Midlands. Saqib was named in the 2020 new year’s honours list and awarded an MBE "for services to diversity and inclusion in the business community", primarily for his work as the first Muslim President of the Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce. In 2013 Bhatti joined the board of the Asian Business Chamber of Commerce (then IAB) and was President from 2014 until 2018. He then served as its Honorary Chairman from 2018 to 2020. He was also Director of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership responsible for business support. In October 2015 he launched the Growth Hub, the premier access point for business support, on behalf of the GBS LEP. Under his tenure, GBS LEP had the largest number of start-ups outside of London for 5 years.

Welcome: Professor Adam Tickell, Vice-Chancellor and Principal, University of Birmingham

Adam took up the post as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Birmingham in January 2022 after five years as Vice-Chancellor at the University of Sussex. Prior to this he served as Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research and Knowledge Transfer), and then Provost, at Birmingham and has also worked in leadership roles at the University of Bristol and Royal Holloway, University of London.

Adam trained as an economic geographer at the University of Manchester, and, amongst other things, his research explored the political economy and regulation of finance, English regionalism, and the economic ‘common sense’.

Adam recently lead a review, on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, that sought to reduce research bureaucracy in government and the wider sector. He is on the Board of Universities UK and the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA), and has served on a wide range of public bodies and charity boards.

Anne Green, Professor of Regional Economic Development, University of Birmingham

Anne Green joined the University of Birmingham as Professor of Regional Economic Development in June 2017. Her research interests span employment, non-employment, regional and local labour market issues, skills strategies, urban and rural development, migration and commuting, associated policy issues and evaluation.

She has published in high profile journals and has written numerous reports for UK Government Departments and agencies. Anne is experienced in disseminating the results of her research to academic, policy and practitioner audiences.

Cllr John Cotton, Leader of Birmingham City Council, Birmingham City Council

Councillor John Cotton was elected as the Leader of Birmingham City Council in May 2023, alongside Cllr Sharon Thompson as Deputy Leader, pledging to “work with and for every single community to deliver the service improvements our citizens deserve.”

Cllr Cotton previously served as the Council’s Cabinet Member for Social Justice, Community Safety & Equalities, and was responsible for leading the city’s response to the cost-of-living crisis, tackling social and economic injustice and building stronger safer communities.

John has previously held Cabinet portfolios covering adult social care, public health and housing, which also reflect his passionate interest in tackling the root causes of poverty and disadvantage.

As Leader, John has pledged to continue his to improve the lives and life chances of the people of Birmingham and help our communities through the continuing cost-of-living crisis. 

A member of both the Labour and Co-operative parties, he was first elected to Birmingham City Council in 1999 and represents the Glebe Farm and Tile Cross Ward in the east of the city. John was born and raised in Birmingham.

Over the course of a varied career, he has worked in private industry, in the office of a Labour MP, in the voluntary sector and as a freelance public affairs consultant. John is also National Chair of Labour Housing Group, the Labour Party’s official affiliated organisation dedicated to developing housing policy to addresses the shortage of decent affordable housing across the UK.

Greg Lowson; Chair of the Board

Greg worked in the law for 41 years before retiring in April 2023. For the last 32 years he had been a partner at Pinsent Masons and was the head of it Birmingham Office for the last 21 years. Pinsent Masons is a Patron of GBCC.Greg became a non-executive director of GBCC in 2007; was President in 2014 - 2016 and was appointed Chair in 2022.Greg is a non-executive director of GBCC member, Pertemps, the largest independent UK recruitment company.

Greg has been the Under Sheriff of the West Midlands since 2014.

Previous positions held by Greg include:

• Trustee of Midlands Arts Centre (mac) 2006 – 2021

• CBI West Midlands Council Member 2004 – 2020

• CBI West Midlands Council Chair 2020 – 2022

• Wesleyan Assurance Advisory Board Member 2008 – 2019

• Trustee of Cure Leukaemia 2014 – 2019

• Trustee of The Birmingham Repertory Theatre 2014 - 2020

DR Nasir Awan, MBE DL; Vice President

Nasir is Chief Executive Officer, Awan Marketing Plc; Director of Awan Marketing International Limited; and Director of Awan Property Investments Limited.

Nasir started in the retail business in 1978, joining his late father. In 1980 he set up a consumer electronics wholesale operation, becoming one of UK’s major distributors.

Awan Marketing is now one of the largest wholesalers in the UK. The company is run by the 3rd generation of the family operating from a 45,000 sq ft distribution centre in Hockley, Birmingham. It carries over 30,000 lines, servicing a customer base of over 14,000 throughout the UK and exporting to Europe, Africa and Asia.

Nasir is Vice-President of The Greater Birmingham Chamber Of Commerce group, Chair of Asian Business Chamber Of Commerce and Chair of Trustees Inspire Education Academy at Yew Tree School, Aston. He is a Trustee of Euro Charity Trust; Birmingham Ethnic Education Services; and Sutton Coldfield Muslim Association. He is also a Director of the National Asian Business Association.