£120m assigned to North Wales Growth Deal by UK Government in Budget

The £120 million funding announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond for the North Wales Growth Deal has been welcomed in some quarters, although the Welsh Government Finance Secretary Mark Drakeford said ‘it falls some way short’.

The six North Wales Councils formally submitted a Growth Bid to the UK and Welsh Governments.

The total cost of investment proposed is nearly £700m, with £126m of direct private sector contributions and £223m of contributions from various partners. The Ambition Board is seeking £338m of capital funding and £8m revenue funding from the Growth Deal.

The Bid is made up of 16 projects in these areas: Land and Property Development, Smart Access to Energy, Adventure Tourism, Smart Technology and Innovation Hubs, the Regional Growth Business Fund, Pathways to Skills and Employment, Skills Centres of Excellence, Digital Connectivity, and Strategic Transport.

The ultimate aim is to create a ‘Smart, Resilient and Connected’ region focused on increasing the value of the North Wales economy from £13.6billion in 2016 to £26billion by 2035.

Chancellor says “£120m for North Wales” Growth Bid / Deal confirmed. Adds overall spending plans mean £550m for Welsh Gov via Barnett formula.

— Wrexham.com (@wrexham) October 29, 2018

The North Wales Economic Ambition Board reacted to of the £120m announcement by the Chancellor saying: “Confirmation of UK Government support for the North Wales Growth Bid means we can now enter into the final stage of discussions to secure the best possible Growth Deal for the region.

“Today’s announcement gives us a strong basis on which to move forward and attract extra funding from the Welsh Government and additional sector programmes and finance streams.

“After so many months of planning by our partners we are of course delighted to have achieved this acknowledgement and recognition of the hard work which has taken place, and can now make firm plans to implement the strategy developed by the Board.

“The Growth Bid is just part of the overall Growth Vision for North Wales, but a vital part that will kick-start a new phase of economic prosperity and build on the incredible industry, skills and talent we have on our doorstep, world-leading businesses and organisations that will benefit from today’s decision.

“We are on track to create thousands of jobs and vastly improve infrastructure across all six counties under nine key programmes in a range of areas, from transport and adventure tourism to digital connectivity, smart energy and land and property.

“We will now look to put a dedicated team in place focused on leading the priority projects to fruition, alongside our partners in local government, education and the private sector.

“We are ready for the hard work that lies ahead in negotiating the best possible Growth Deal, to fulfil our aim of delivering a Smart, Resilient and Connected region. We expect the final Deal to be in place later in 2019.”

Responding to the announcement of funding for the Deal the Welsh Government Finance Secretary Mark Drakeford said “The Welsh Government has long championed a growth deal for North Wales and has been actively engaged with the North Wales Economic Ambition Board, alongside the UK Government to ensure a deal which is right for the people, communities and businesses of North Wales.

“The UK Government’s unilateral announcement today is disappointing as it falls some way short of what we and the people of North Wales have been expecting and working hard towards.

“We remain fully committed to delivering this potentially transformative growth deal, and will continue to work to get the package and direction right for North Wales, agreeing heads of terms on a deal as soon as possible.”

Wrexham’s MP Ian Lucas was in the Commons when the announcement was made, later he said: “The UK Government’s support for the North Wales Growth Deal in today’s Autumn Budget is welcome but it is also limited and long overdue. It is the first time we have had a price tag at all for the Growth Deal, though this is the third Budget in which it has appeared.

“And that price tag is less than anticipated – a commitment of at least £150m had been mentioned so the investment of £120m is less than hoped.

“The bid itself was developed through a lot of hard work and great cohesion across North Wales, a coming together of local government, business groups, education centres and politicians from a range of parties. Relentless pressure for this announcement was applied to the UK Government from several areas, including from the All Party Parliamentary Group for our region which was set up in 2015. I wrote to the Chancellor only last week, in my role as chair of the group, to remind him of the importance of the bid.

“Now we must ensure this deal delivers lasting benefits for our region. This is wonderful opportunity for North Wales and we must ensure it has a transformational impact on our community.”