Former Confederation of British Industry (CBI) boss Sir John Banham is set to become chairman of the forthcoming Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), Business Cornwall understands.
Sir John, who lives in West Cornwall and is chairman of specialist metals company Johnson Mathey, has long been a champion of the Cornish business scene, and was a strong supporter of the Council’s bid for the LEP.
While the news will broadly welcomed by the Cornish business community, those who fear that the LEP will not be truly private sector-led will not be appeased.
The chairman will be one of ten board members of the LEP, but crucially will be a non-voting member. LEP rules say that at least 50% of the board must be private sector. And sceptics point out, if this is how the LEP board is made up, then the public sector will have the deciding vote.
