Recent negative national headlines about Birmingham should spark a series of ‘radical solutions’ and a fightback campaign, the chairman of the Lunar Society has said in his inaugural lecture.
A Citizens’ Charter for the city with a clear set of values would help it compete globally and encourage economic growth, Waheed Saleem told the society’s AGM.
And issues of social cohesion, economic development and civic leadership needed addressing if Birmingham was to continue its “regeneration renaissance”.
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The society’s chairman said the city needs to recreate the ‘Chamberlain factor’ – referring to former mayor Joseph Chamberlain, who is credited with building modern Birmingham.
Mr Saleem said that only radical solutions would help Birmingham regain the title of the “City of Enlightenment”, which it last held during the 18th century.
He said: “Birmingham is a sleeping giant of a city and I believe that it can once again become the city that leads the world.
“This is a time when we need a strong fightback from all sections of the city in order that – as individuals – we can develop a cohesive society,” said Mr Saleem.
“We need a clear set of Birmingham values and an embedded Birmingham Citizens’ Charter, developed by the people of the city, embraced by everyone and promoted across Birmingham.
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“Every school should teach these values, irrespective of the status of the school, every religious institution should embed it in their teaching and every institution should abide by these values including civic, private and Third Sector organisations.”
He said more work also needed to be done in communities and neighbourhoods so that fairness became the defining concept and people “respect difference and embrace the collective good.”
Birmingham still had some distance to go before it could again be considered the City of Enlightenment, he said.
“An enlightened city would not have the disparity of outcomes we have in Birmingham – instead, economic progress would ensure greater access to employment opportunities across the spectrum.
“We would see fairness in access to good education wherever you live in the city, fair access to jobs and the freedom to develop economic growth in the local community through encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship. This would be a city that encourages and supports economic growth for the masses, not just for the few.”
Mr Saleem said he firmly believed the city could once again lead the 海角视频 but needed to develop the Chamberlain factor – a reference to the reformer Joseph Chamberlain, often credited with being the city’s greatest leader, who died 100 years ago.
“Chamberlain made the bold decision to nationalise gas and water. Today, I call for the city council to make the equally bold decision of developing a city-wide low carbon energy company, providing new forms of energy through a network of district energy systems.
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“One of the biggest issues facing families is the cost of electricity and gas, so let’s do something about this to ensure no one in the city suffers from fuel poverty. Birmingham needs a new City Region Mayor with the combined authority as the first step.”
The Lunar Society has its origins in the 18th century, and is named because its founding members met during a full moon which lit the way home before the advent of universal street lighting. It is a group of leading individuals in Birmingham, and acts as neutral platform to debate ideas and seek change in different aspects of society.
The society’s AGM was hosted by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Councillor Shafique Shah, on Tuesday, July 15, at Birmingham Council House.