Critics argue that Scotland, Northern Ireland and the North of England have been left behind in the latest £2.1bn round of Levelling Up funding allocations
The Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has announced the latest series of approved Levelling-Up projects to receive funding in 2023. Projects include urban centre regeneration in areas such as Rotheram, Newham, Ashton Luton and Stoke-on-Trent. The £2.1bn allocated to projects comes from the overall £4.8bn Levelling Up fund announced in 2020.
Some claim that the Levelling Up allocations have been politically motivated
Speaking in Morecambe on Thursday- where the Eden Project North was allocated £50m-prime minister Rishi Sunak commented responded to claims that the funding had disproportionately favoured the South of England:”Two thirds of all the Levelling Up funding is going to the most deprived parts of our country.”
But critics were quick to notice that the prime minister’s own Richmond constituency had benefited from £19m from the Levelling Up Fund to revitalise the high street of small military town Catterick Garrison.
Many recalled the prime minister’s comments of the previous summer in Turnbridge Wells during his party leadership campaign, telling party members he had redirected funding away from “deprived urban areas” to “make sure areas like this are getting the funding they deserve” in his role as Chancellor.
The Levelling Up Funding regional allocations, from high to low
- North West: £354,027,146
- South East: £210,467,526
- Wales: £208,175,566
- South West: £186,663,673
- Scotland: £177,206,114
- East Midlands: £176,870,348
- East: £165,903,400
- West Midlands: £155,579,834
- London: £151,266,674
- Yorkshire and the Humber: £120,619,162
- North East: £108,548,482
- Northern Ireland: £71,072,373
Many parts of the North and Scotland feel overlooked
York’s city council applied for over £20m in urban regeneration developments, as well as a £5m bid for active travel and accessibility works around the proposed Haxby Station, all of which were unsuccessful.
After Moray Council’s bid for £18m to revitalise Elgin town centre was denied, Moray MSP Richard Lochhead said “It is incredible to think that our region, with some of the biggest barriers to economic development will receive zero funding and it destroys any claims by the Conservative Party that they understand or care about the needs of Scotland’s rural communities.”
Labour responded that the Levelling Up fund did not make up for years of austerity draining services
Shadow communities minister Alex Norris told MPs there was a “rock-bottom allocation for Yorkshire and the Humber, nothing for the cities of Birmingham, Nottingham and Stoke, nothing for Stonehouse in Plymouth, a community in the bottom 0.2% for economic activity.”
Sunak responded to accusations that the funding allocations were strategic to boost support for the Conservative in their constituencies by claiming that “I think around half the funding we have announced over the course of today, or both funds, has actually gone to places that are not controlled by Conservative MPs or councils.”
Asked about the South East receiving larger sums of cash, Levelling Up secretary Mr Gove said: “It’s simply untrue that the Levelling Up fund is concentrated disproportionately on London and the South East.”
Shadow Levelling Up secretary Lisa Nandy said the sporadic and singular sums of cash was a “Hunger Games-style contest” which only offered a partial refund for resources stripped out of communities through austerity measures.
Jonathan Carr-West, head of the Local Government Information Unit think tank, questioned the effectiveness of the scheme: “People will debate whether these allocations are right or fair but the real problem here is that this is a crazy way to fund local government.”
Industry voices share concerns about the fairness of the Levelling Up fund
Sean Keyes, managing director, Sutcliffe, said:
“With Liverpool and particularly Manchester the two areas in the North West that are generating the most wealth, infrastructure and opportunities, it is very disappointing to see that both have missed out on their bids for major regeneration projects in the second round of the Levelling Up fund.
“It seems strange that the supposed Levelling Up of the whole country, has ignored both Liverpool and Manchester, and although it is pleasing that the North West as a whole has received a combined £355m, much more needs to be done to ensure that there is parity and equal chances for growth in the North and the South in 2023 and beyond.”
Harriet Clough
Twitter: @Harriet_PBC
