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North West

The North West will benefit from schemes announced in the Spending Review:

Growth

• the creation of a UK-wide Green Investment Bank that will be funded by a £1 billion spending allocation and additional proceeds from the sale of Government-owned assets. The bank will encourage significant additional investment in green infrastructure – the North West has an offshore wind farm technology industry;
• £530m of investment in broadband, benefiting a total of around 2 million households, including in some of the most remote areas of the UK. The Government will also pursue a superfast broadband pilot project in Cumbria benefiting thousands of households in the area;
• Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPS) which will provide the strategic leadership in areas and set out local economic priorities.  LEPs will play a pivotal role in delivering the Government’s aim for an economy rebalanced towards the private sector; and
• Capital investment programmes in the North West will concentrate new investment on infrastructure underpinning economic growth, and maintaining existing public assets:
  • Manchester - Rail capacity improvements
  • Mersey Gateway bridge – new suspension bridge over the River Mersey between Widnes and Runcorn that will relieve serious congestion pressure on the existing Silver Jubilee Bridge
  • £85 million redevelopment of West Cumberland hospital
  • £42 million for a Women’s and Children’s Unit at the Royal Oldham Hospital, in Greater Manchester to provide the highest level of neonatal intensive care

Fairness

• funding the increase in participation in education and training, benefiting 7.3 per cent of 16-18 year olds in North West that are not in Education, Employment or Training;
• uprating of the Basic State Pension (BSP) by the highest of earning, prices or 2.5 per cent, from April 2011, benefiting around 1.3 million people in the North West; and
• above indexation increases in the child tax credit, funded by savings from restricting child benefit entitlement for households with a high rate taxpayer, potentially benefiting over 510,000 families the North West.

Public Service Reform

• a settlement for local government that radically increases local authorities’ freedom to manage their budgets, resulting in greater control over £7 billion of grants; and
• Community budgets will be run in 16 local areas, including Manchester, Blackpool, and Blackburn with Darwen, from April 2011 for families with complex needs, to help improve outcomes, and reduce duplication and waste.

The Spending Review builds on the foundations for sustainable, balanced, private sector-led recovery set out in the Chancellor’s June Budget. The Budget announced a number of initiatives which will help build an economy that works for the North West.

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