Digesting the Spending Review
Your guide to the key announcements made by the Chancellor
James Gore
In the recent Spending Review on 25 November, the Chancellor of the Exchequer made several announcements which will have piqued the interest of places across the country but may be directly relevant to the plans for your Town and the Towns Fund.
We are preparing briefings on the initiatives we think are most relevant for your bids and will be sharing the information we have available with you very shortly. As more details emerge, we shall be providing further guidance and advice.
In this blog we set out six headline announcements from the Chancellor’s autumn set piece and, more importantly, why we think you may want to take them into consideration for your Town, whether you are currently working towards submitting your Town Investment Plan or starting to develop your project business cases for phase two of the programme.
Levelling Up Infrastructure Fund
Worth £4 billion across England, this Fund will invest in local infrastructure that has a visible impact on local people and their communities and will support economic recovery. A cross-departmental Fund, it will target a broad range of high value local projects up to £20 million. Examples include bypasses and other local road schemes, bus lanes, railway station upgrades, regenerating eyesores, upgrading town centres and community infrastructure, and local arts and culture. A prospectus for the Fund will be published in the New Year, when the first round of competitions will also be launched. Bids will be expected to command local support and projects must be delivered within the current Parliament.
Green Book review
The Green Book (the government’s guidance on best practice for appraisal of business cases for publicly funded projects) has been reviewed and changes will be made to how project proposals are appraised, affecting investment decisions. The aim is for projects to deliver key government priorities and address regional imbalances by using measures beyond benefit cost ratios in decision making.
National Infrastructure Strategy
Published alongside the Spending Review, the National Infrastructure Strategy sets out plans to transform UK infrastructure. It will encompass transport, digital, energy and utility networks and takes a long-term perspective including multi-year funding commitments for key infrastructure programmes. More information is expected to be published over the coming months on specific aspects of the Strategy including how it will contribute to achieving the UK’s commitment to net zero emissions by 2050.
Freeports
Ten freeports across the UK will be established as national hubs for global trade and investment, promoting regeneration, job creation and innovation. Up to £10 million of resource funding will be available, alongside £175 million of capital funding. The process for Towns that are sea, air or rail ports to bid for selection is already open and closes on Friday 5 February 2021.
UK Shared Prosperity Fund
Aimed at ramping up UK-wide funding to fill – and potentially exceed – the gap left by EU structural funds, the Shared Prosperity Fund will focus on creating opportunity across the UK for people and places. Part of the Fund will target places most in need, such as ex-industrial areas, deprived towns and rural and coastal communities. It will invest in people, communities and local businesses, with further details to be published in spring.
National Infrastructure Bank
Set to be headquartered in the North of England, the Bank will support private infrastructure projects to help meet the government’s objectives on economic growth, levelling up, and transitioning to net zero. It is expected to commence operation in spring.
If you have any specific queries about what these opportunities may mean for your Town, please contact your Town Coordinator to see how our team of topic experts can help.