| Synopsis: |
Lord Heseltine, 'No stone unturned: in pursuit of growth' (available at http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/corporate/docs/n/12-1213-no-stone-unturned-in-pursuit-of-growth) made 89 wide-ranging recommendations to the Government, across areas of public policy that affect economic growth. Today, the Government announced it is accepting the overwhelming majority of these recommendations and setting out how the Government is addressing the priorities Lord Heseltine identified, equipping the UK to compete and thrive in the global race. At the heart of this is action to reverse excessive centralisation, freeing local areas from Whitehall control and giving businesses and local leaders the power and the funding to do what they need to achieve their potential. The Government will create a new Single Local Growth Fund from 2015 that will include the key economic levers of skills, housing and transport funding, with full details set out at the forthcoming Spending Round.It will also harness the power of competition to get the best from places, negotiating a local Growth Deal with every Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), with the allocation of the Single Local Growth Fund reflecting the quality of their ideas and local need. This is a something-for-something deal and local areas will be challenged to put in place the right governance across local authorities, pool resources, and find match funding from the private sector. GBP2.6 billion has already been allocated through the Regional Growth Fund, forecast to deliver and safeguard 500,000 jobs and GBP13 billion of private investment |