31 July 2008
England’s RDAs welcome £87bn Government commitment to new round
of Regional Funding Allocations
The English Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) have welcomed
the Government’s second round of Regional Funding Allocations
(RFAs), announced by Yvette Cooper, Chief Secretary to the
Treasury.
The new round of RFAs, worth over £87 billion up to 2019, will
allow regions to advise government on their investment priorities
for transport, housing, regeneration, and economic development
against indicative regional funding allocations.
NWDA Chief Executive Steven Broomhead, speaking on behalf of all
the RDAs, said:
“It is crucial that national Government departments and agencies
have greater regard to regional priorities. We welcome today’s
announcement, which will see the regions having the freedom to
decide how best to deliver a regionally-agreed, coherent investment
programme which aligns aspects of spatial planning, transport,
economic development and housing, taking account of economic
geography.
“The focus now will be for each region to outline short-term
investment priorities to help their economies, along with medium
and long-term plans to help to ensure sustainable economic
growth. We are committed to providing regionally agreed,
coherent investment plans that are based on robust evidence and
provide the greatest opportunity for the regions to realise their
full potential for growth.”
The RDAs, with partners, fed into the first Regional Funding
Allocations exercise in 2005/06, which proved to be significant in
aligning and setting out regional investment priorities, including
the development of a ten-year programme of transport schemes that
the Government is now enabling Local Authorities and the Highways
Agency to deliver.
The new round of RFAs will expand the range of funding sources
against which the Government is seeking advice including major
transport schemes, the Regional Housing Pot, English Partnerships
funding, Housing Market Renewal Growth Funds, the Community
Infrastructure Fund, Thames Gateway funding and the RDA single
budget. Crucially, the new round will set out the critical skills
investment required to drive forward economic growth.
-ends-
Notes to Editors
• For press enquiries please contact the NWDA Press
Office:
Rachel Ormandy on 01925 400237 or Rachel.Ormandy@nwda.co.uk
Neil Roscoe on 01925 400232 or Neil.Roscoe@nwda.co.uk
• The RDAs are business led organisations set up by Government
in 1999 to promote sustainable economic development in
England. They work with key public and private sector
regional partners to increase the economic performance of the
regions and reduce social and economic disparities within and
between regions.
• The RDAs have five priorities which they believe are
essential to deliver sustained economic growth in the regions:
promoting skills; improving infrastructure; supporting enterprise;
encouraging innovation; and enabling economic inclusion.
• For more information on England’s Regional Development
Agencies please go to www.englandsrdas.com