The LEP has been out and about throughout 2016 encouraging debate and discussion on a number of important issues.

We’ve staged five Big Debates across Greater Lincolnshire on topics including agrifood, devolution and the Midlands Engine, and a total of 255 business people have come along to take part.

Our first debate in Lincoln in May took the Midlands Engine as its topic and welcomed the then Midlands Engine Director David Sharif as one of the panellists.

Since then we’ve visited Grantham, Brigg and Grimsby debating other big issues, and speakers have included Lincolnshire County Council leader Councillor Martin Hill and MPs John Hayes, Melanie Onn and Martin Vickers.

The latest Big Debate took place last month at Grimsby Institute and was the second discussion to focus on agrifood, following an earlier debate in Spalding.

The question of how to attract young talent into the industry dominated discussions at the event, where LEP board director Mark Tinsley took the chair and James Truscott, Managing Director of potato firm Branston, was on the panel.

The other panellists were Greater Grimsby MP Melanie Onn, the MP for Cleethorpes Martin Vickers, and Martin Collison from consultants Collison Associates.

Mark said: “To ensure the economic interests of Greater Lincolnshire are represented, we as a LEP need to know what people think, which is why we launched the Big Debate series.

“We were delighted to welcome so many people at our second Big Food Debate, including our panelists, who all spoke passionately about the issues affecting the industry.

“People’s main concerns focused on attracting young talent into a sector, which is perceived by many to be low paid, and retaining skills in Greater Lincolnshire. The contribution migrant workers make to the sector was also acknowledged by the panelists and it was clear that people working in the industry also wanted to see more investment in research and development.

“I would like to thank everyone who attended for their participation; their comments will not only inform the LEP’s Agri Food Sector Plan but hopefully be fed back to government.”

Look out for further announcements about more Big Debates in 2017.