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  • January update: regional growth and recovery

January update: regional growth and recovery

How English regions are responding to coronavirus and their plans to build back better, kick start demand and unleash competitiveness.

29 Jan 2021, 5 min read

We’re committed to ensuring your voice is heard in your region, and that real, practical change can be driven to boost productivity and prosperity. To do this, the CBI sits on business groups across Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCAs) and Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) who are working on the COVID-19 response and the longer-term economic recovery.

In this monthly update, you’ll find insights from these MCAs and LEPs, with a specific focus on how to kick start demand and unleash competitiveness on people and skills for growth and how to build back better for a more sustainable future. Discover a region-by-region breakdown of the latest developments and understand how you can get involved.

Latest headlines

  • There’s speculation whether local government elections planned for 6 May will go ahead following the one-year delay. Indications suggest government will wait to see whether current lockdown restrictions are making an adequate difference before reaching a decision. Regional mayors divided on the issue.
  • Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has demanded a "major transfer of power and resources into the English regions to give us the chance of making 'levelling up' a real programme".  The task of rebuilding northern cities after the pandemic could not be done on the "fractured foundations of local government".
  • Sir Keir Starmer has called on government to scrap 5% council tax raise given current pressure on families and instead has called on government to increase funding for local government.

Kickstarting demand and competitiveness

  • The West of England Combined Authority has secured funding from the government for a logistics-focused project which will test how the country can seize the full benefits of 5G and help businesses harness the power of modern technology.
  • Net Zero North West has secured £8m of funding to plot the world’s first net zero industrial cluster. It will be delivered in collaboration with Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and Cheshire and Warrington LEP, as well as in partnership with stakeholders in North Wales.

People and skills for growth

  • York and North Yorkshire LEP and the Careers and Enterprise Company set to host a careers and skills information event for young people to ensure they are not left behind on accessing support, learning, training, and employment opportunities because of the pandemic.
  • A peer-to-peer networking programme is launching across East and West Midlands to bring companies together to recover from the impact of COVID-19.

Building back better

  • The North East has secured a £34m investment for The Northumberland Line as part of the DfT’s package to level up regional transport infrastructure. The line was previously closed as part of the Beeching Cuts.
  • Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority has approved 4.5 million of grant funding to help create 113 new affordable homes across East Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire and Peterborough.

Regional insights

  • North West: Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotherham has proposed a freeze on Mayoral Council Tax Precept, Mersey Tunnel Tolls and the Transport Levy, aiming to reduce the cost on households, and potentially setting precedent in other regions.
  • North East: Colleges have signed up to deliver the Teesworks Skills Academy. The initiative announced by Mayor Ben Houchen will support local people to gain the skills they need to take advantage of new jobs being created at the Teesworks site.
  • Yorkshire and Humber: York and North Yorkshire LEP and the Careers and Enterprise Company set to host a careers and skills information event for young people to ensure they are not left behind on accessing support, learning, training, and employment opportunities because of the pandemic.
  • West Midlands: WMCA has backed on going regeneration of Birmingham’s former Longbridge car plant with a £780k funding deal. WMCA has also secured £51m of government funding to transform derelict industrial sites for housing allocation from the National Brownfield Housing Fund and the Land Fund.
  • East Midlands: Funding has been agreed to support the construction of a new Jaguar Land Rover base in Leicestershire creating 5,000 new jobs.
  • South West: West of England Mayor Tim Bowles has announced a £2m digital skills investment programme to provide bespoke training to residents, who have been negatively affected by the pandemic, with the access and confidence to build new digital skills, while also helping businesses to meet their skills needs.
  • South East: Thames Valley Berkshire Business Growth Hub has launched a free business start-up course to help budding entrepreneurs across Berkshire turn their business ideas into reality. The service includes free clinics and masterclasses alongside a special Recovery and Growth Programme to provide intensive tailored support to SMEs.
  • East of England: The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority will take over all transport responsibilities from April 2021. Over the past three years the combined authority has delegated its responsibilities for public transport back to the councils but that will now end.

How you can get involved

The CBI will be setting out pro-business manifestos for May’s mayoral elections promoting regional recovery and long-term prosperity. If you would like to shape the CBI’s recommendations in each of these areas or want more information please contact the appropriate colleague: