"Blueprint for American Prosperity" - Bruce Katz speech & panel event

Date: 27/02/2008 10:30am
End Date: 27/02/2008 12:30pm

Speakers:

Bruce Katz, Director, Metropolitan Policy Progamme, Brookings Institution

A Centre for Cities and LSE event

Jubilee Room, House of Commons

Chaired by Faisal Islam, Channel 4 News

Bruce Katz, Director of the Metropolitan Policy Programme at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC, and one of the leading US experts on urban development, gave a keynote speech to a Centre for Cities/LSE event hosted by Clive Betts MP, Chair of the All-Party Urban Development Group, in the House of Commons on Wednesday 27 February. Dermot Finch has covered the event on his blog here.

At the start of this US Presidential election year, Bruce presented a compelling case for a new national agenda for the US- a Blueprint for American Prosperity - to give cities there the tools and rules they need to prosper. US and UK cities are very different in many ways, but face a familiar set of challenges around housing, transport, jobs, globalisation, migration, economic disparities and environmental pressures. 

A panel of UK experts responded to Bruce's speech: Howard Davies (Director, LSE), Liz Peace (Chief Executive, British Property Federation) and Dermot Finch (Director, Centre for Cities). The invited audience included city councils, local government departments, and business representatives. In the debate which followed, a strong consensus emerged on the new devolved powers cities need in order to grow their economies, and the need for greater trust between city leaders and businesses.

The Centre for Cities and Brookings Institution will be collaborating over coming months to examine the links between British and American urban policies, and look at new innovations to help cities grow their economies.