North East LEP response to government's Growth Plan - North East Local Enterprise Partnership

Helen Golightly OBE, Chief Executive of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “The announcement of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme will be welcome news for businesses in our region; many of whom faced a difficult winter because of rising energy costs. Businesses will want reassurance that ongoing support is available post 31 March and we look forward to seeing the results of the scheme’s three month interim review. Additional support announced for pubs and hospitality businesses is also welcome as these sectors were some of the worst affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We await further detail on the new Investment Zones and confirmation on which local and mayoral combined authority areas will benefit from the new hubs. We also look forward to seeing how the North East will benefit from government’s plans to speed up road, rail and energy infrastructure across the country. There has been no update in today’s mini budget on future plans around the Levelling Up agenda and support for our key industries to grow so we’re keen to see more information from government on those areas.

“The government’s focus on increasing long term growth rates to 2.5% is positive news for the economy, especially as the UK has underperformed over the last decade. To deliver its growth plan, it’s important that government looks for opportunity to drive growth and investment in every part of the UK, and demonstrates how we can both deliver growth and level up the country.”