A Liverpool City Councillor has taken a prestigious new international role in attempt to boost the city’s position in Europe.
Councillor Nick Small, Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Employment, Enterprise and Skills, will be appointed as the new chair of the Eurocities Economic Development Forum.
He told JMU Journalism: “I hope the role will help me be a better local councillor and cabinet member. I’m already seeing lots of interesting projects across Europe that we could bring to the city.”
The new position will see him chair over 78 of the forum’s member cities, which meets three times a year and raises awareness of the European Commission to make sure future programmes and vital funding are secured.
The forum will seek to have input into the development of new European Union funding programmes to succeed Objective One and European Regional Development Fund which brought huge benefits to Merseyside.
Mr Small said: “EU funding has transformed Liverpool. As the city faces unprecedented cuts in funding from central government, EU funding will play an increasingly important role in helping the mayor deliver his priorities on jobs and the economy.”
“Having someone from Liverpool chairing the Economic Development Forum of Eurocities can only help us deliver that.”
Councillor Small wasappointed in his new position, which he will hold until 2014, in a meeting held in Latvian capital, Riga this month.
He will be a part of the working group helping to shape the development of Horizon 2020, an €80 billion research and innovation enterprise aimed at securing Europe’s global competitiveness.