2021 Manifesto FINAL DRAFT - Flipbook - Page 21
Economy
Time for change
When the WMCA was formed in
2016 it was assumed that
devolution would result in growth.
But nearly five years on, there is
still little evidence that this is the
case. Growth in the region is
modest and productivity is around
11.8% below average.
There is also an assumption that
when (or if) we see more
abundant growth, everyone will
benefit. Again, there is no
evidence to say so.
Even when the economy was
growing before Covid, it was clear
that the wealth wasn’t being
shared. We were seeing the same
handful of individuals get richer,
while the rest of us saw a fall in
our living standards.
One of the consistent themes in
recent elections has been the
level of poverty in the West
Midlands. For example, in the
Black Country two in five children
are growing up in poverty.
Even the assumption that
increasing employment will solve
all our problems needs
questioning. Most children living
in poverty in the West Midlands
actually live in households where
at least one adult works. It’s clear
that work, for many, isn’t
providing the decent standard of
living it should.
A whole generation of working
young people are unable to get a
stable job that pays a decent
wage, let alone consider the
possibility of owning their own
home. At the moment, more than
half of all West Midlands adults
have less than £100 in savings.
They are just a broken washing
machine or winter coat away from
disaster.
As mayor, I will strive towards a
West Midlands where no one is
destitute and there are no more
than 10% of people living in
poverty at any one time, and none
for more than two years.
However, it’s not just the fact that
so many people in our society are
on such low incomes that’s a
problem. The increasing level of
inequality that we are seeing
needs tackling for its own sake.