Bringing the Black Country out of Birmingham's shadow would be priority, says Labour's mayoral candidate
As part of party conference season, we interviewed Labour's candidate for West Midlands mayor Richard Parker. This is the first article in a series we've produced from that interview.
Labour's candidate to be mayor of the West Midlands said bringing the Black Country from out of the shadow of Birmingham would be one of his priorities, if elected.
Richard Parker said the West Midlands had an identity problem compared to other regions with an elected mayor.
He said while London and Greater Manchester had clear identities and a sense of belonging, few people described themselves as being from the West Midlands.
"If you ask people where they are from, they will give you the name of their town, city or borough, or they will say they are English or British," he said. "Nobody says they are from the West Midlands."
Mr Parker said if elected, he would seek to set up extra offices in the Black Country and Coventry to ensure that all parts of the region were represented.
Mr Parker spoke to the Express & Star following a working lunch with business leaders at the Richardson group in Oldbury.
He said one only had to hear how often national media pundits referred to the present mayor as the 'Mayor of Birmingham' to realise the area had an identity problem.
"When visitors come to this region from overseas, it is important that they know the different places.
"The role is not just the mayor of Birmingham, but also the mayor of Wolverhampton, Walsall and Dudley, and Sandwell."
Mr Parker said there were a number of ways that could be tackled, not least the terminology that was used.
"The one thing, is that we have to be more careful about the language we use," he said.
"But I think it is also important to have a presence in the different parts of the region.
"If elected I would have an office in the Black Country.
"I don't know where that would be. Given a four-year term, I could actually choose a different part for each year, all you need these days is a desk, a phone and internet access."
A former partner in accountancy firm Price Waterhouse Cooper, one of Mr Parker's projects was working with local council leaders to set up the West Midlands Combined Authority.
He left Price Waterhouse Cooper in 2016 to set up his own business working with small companies and social enterprises involved with green investment, housing initiatives and the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
