As Cabinet Member for Economic Development, I agree that Kent County Council:
(i) continue to manage, monitor, and recover outstanding investments from recipients of the Kent and Medway Business Fund (KMBF) and Regional Growth Fund (RGF) – former Expansion East Kent, Tiger and Escalate investments, after the expiry of the former delegated authority on 31 March 2023;
(ii) divert the existing KMBF pipeline applications to the Innovation Investment Initiative (i3) fund, to continue to support economic growth within the county and to include the generation of income through administration and management fees to allow for the continuation of managing, monitoring, and recovery all outstanding investments;
(iii) delegate the authority to the Director of Growth and Communities to enter into the relevant contracts and legal agreements required to implement this decision and to continue to manage and recover outstanding investments from recipients of KMBF\RGF funding after 31 March 2023; and
(iv) before the end of 2023, to bring proposals to the Growth, Economic Development and Communities Cabinet Committee for new arrangements related to the recycled KMBF\RGF investments based on the outcome of on-going negotiations with the Government.