Politics
Coventry Voters Decide: 0.8% Business Levy Funds 1,800 Jobs
Voters decide July 18 on a proposed 0.8 percent business rates supplement expected to finance transport upgrades and training facilities tied to 1,800 projected construction and logistics positions.
How we reported this
The Coventry Infrastructure Levy Referendum asks residents whether the city should introduce a temporary business rates supplement to raise £95 million over five years for road widening on the A45, new rail sidings at Coventry Arena and expanded skills centres at the former Peugeot site.
Why the measure reaches the ballot now
National changes to transport grants announced in the 2025 spending review reduced Coventry City Council’s capital allocation by £22 million, prompting the council to place the levy before voters rather than draw further from existing reserves. The legislation requires a simple majority in the July 18 postal ballot for the supplement to take effect from April 2027.
Policy analysts note that the funds would be ring-fenced under the Coventry City Region Deal for projects already listed in the council’s 2026-2031 capital programme. Local advocates point out that daily commuters on the A45 corridor number more than 14,000, according to the council’s 2025 traffic survey, and that several bus routes serving Canley and Tile Hill currently run at capacity during peak hours.
What passage would mean for residents’ work and services
Approval would allow the council to begin procurement for 12 kilometres of carriageway improvements and two new freight sidings, work the authority states would support direct employment for 1,800 people in construction and supply-chain roles during the build phase. The same package includes £14 million for adult retraining places at the skills centres, targeted at residents currently registered with Jobcentre Plus in the CV1 and CV2 postcodes.
Service budgets would remain unchanged under the current draft, with the council confirming that library opening hours and children’s centre staffing levels would continue at 2026 levels rather than face the reductions outlined in the contingency plan published last March. The legislation states that any surplus levy revenue after infrastructure completion must be returned to business ratepayers within three years.
The referendum closes at 10 pm on 18 July, with results expected the following morning. If rejected, the council has said it will revert to the reduced capital programme already approved in the March budget, which omits the A45 widening and the Arena sidings.