BOROUGH chiefs will travel to Cannes next week in an attempt to attract investment to east Cheshire.

Following a Freedom of Information request sent to Cheshire East Council, it confirmed that leader Cllr Rachel Bailey and Frank Jordan, executive director of place, will attend this year’s MIPIM event at a cost of almost £3,000.

MIPIM is an annual property event held in Cannes, in southern France, where hundreds of businesses from around the world network.

This year’s showcase takes place from Tuesday, March 14 to Friday, March 17, and 23,000 participants are expected to attend from 90 countries.

A spokesman for CEC told the Guardian that the event is important for promoting the borough as ‘a great place to live, work, visit and do business’.

They said: “We are proud of our area and keen to shout about it.

“MIPIM property conferences offer a valuable opportunity to meet international stakeholders who are potential investors in east Cheshire for the benefit of our local economy and infrastructure.

“Being represented at MIPIM Cannes is a valuable opportunity to initiate discussions with new investors and continue relationships with existing ones.

“Having a strong and resilient economy is one of the council’s priorities and, as such, any opportunity to attract inward investment to our region is welcomed.”

CEC is spending £1,647.02 on passes for next week’s event, plus £1,144.13 for flights and £206.66 on hotel rooms – taking the total spend to £2,997.81.

Last year, CEC spent a total of £6,603.08 to send Cllr Paul Bates, chairman of the Skills and Growth Company shadow board, and Julian Cobley, head of investment, to the event – including a £5,000 sponsorship package which paid for event management at the conference as well as fees for MIPIM passes.

A spokesman for CEC told the Guardian that last year it aimed to promote the Northern Gateway development zone and Crewe’s HS2 station bid to investors, and conversations with investors ‘are continuing as a result of enquiries received at the event’.