Supporting jobs and investment in local areas, helping
people feel better off, by:
- supporting millions of jobs and businesses across every
corner of the UK through the COVID-19 support schemes
- setting out a National Infrastructure Strategy to increase
transport and digital connectivity across the UK
- setting up a new infrastructure bank to catalyse private
investment in infrastructure projects across the UK
- setting out £100bn of capital investment next year to boost
growth across the UK:
What is the National Infrastructure Strategy?
- The National Infrastructure Strategy (NIS) sets out the
government’s plans to transform UK infrastructure, boosting
transport and digital connectivity, based around three central
objectives: economic recovery from Covid-19; levelling up and
strengthening the Union; meeting the UK’s Net Zero Emissions
target by 2050
- The government will spend £27bn in 2021-22 on economic
infrastructure, as part of the £100bn of capital investment.
- Some of the measures being announced include
- A major new national infrastructure bank based in the north
of England;
- Long-term transport funding settlements for northern
cities;
- A new Levelling Up Fund worth £4 billion for England to
invest in local infrastructure
- £1.3bn to support vital new technologies: carbon capture
and storage and hydrogen;
- £1.9bn for electric vehicle charging infrastructure and
grants for zero and ultra-low emissions vehicles, coupled with
a commitment to end the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles
by 2030;
- £5.2bn flood defence funding to protect 336,000 homes;
- Landmark reform of the planning system to make it easier to
build social infrastructure.
What is a UK infrastructure bank?
- The bank will support infrastructure projects across the
UK.
- It will focus on i) economic growth ii) levelling up iii)
transitioning to Net Zero.
- It will be operational in an interim form from spring 2021.
- The bank will co-invest alongside private sector investors,
using loans, guarantees, equity and hybrid products.
- It will be headquartered in the north of England and
operate UK-wide.
- Able to lend and offer advisory support to local and
mayoral authorities for key regional infrastructure projects.
- It will replace some of the activities of the European
Investment Bank (EIB) but provide more targeted support for UK
projects.
Changing the way that government delivers for local
areas by:
- Reforming the Green Book to better link projects and
programmes to government objectives so that only proposals that
meet them are short listed and improving the understanding of
impacts of proposals on places.
- Ensuring that public spending across government is focused
on delivering priority outcomes for citizens, such as raising
productivity and empowering places so everyone can benefit from
levelling up.
- We have put this into practice by assessing all decisions
made at SR in line with these priority outcomes, including
investment in the Transforming Cities Fund, the UK Shared
Prosperity Fund and selections for the Government's High
Potential Opportunities Programme.
- Relocating 22,000 civil service roles out of London and the
South East by 2030 in order to ensure civil servants reflect
the communities they serve.
Helping towns and cities to thrive by:
- Setting out how the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will help to
level up and create opportunity for people and places across
the UK; and providing £220 million additional funding to help
local areas prepare over 2021-22 for introduction of the new
Fund.
- A new Levelling Up Fund worth £4bn for England to invest in
local infrastructure that has a visible impact on people and
their communities and will support economic recovery
- Investing in local transport like roads, buses, and cycling
What is the Levelling Up Fund?
- The government is launching a new Levelling Up Fund worth
£4bn for England,
- This will invest in local infrastructure that has a visible
impact on people and their communities and will support
economic recovery.
- This new cross-departmental Fund for England will invest in
a broad range of high value local projects up to £20 million,
or more by exception, including bypasses and other local road
schemes, bus lanes, railway station upgrades, regenerating
eyesores, upgrading town centres and community infrastructure,
and local arts and culture.
- It will be open to all areas in England and prioritise bids
to drive growth and regeneration in places in need, those
facing particular challenges, and in areas that have received
less government investment in recent years.
- The SR makes available up to £600m in 2021-22. We will
publish a prospectus for the fund and launch the first round of
competitions in the New Year.
What is the UK Shared Prosperity Fund?
- The UK Shared Prosperity Fund will help to level up and
create opportunity across the UK for people and places.
- It will operate UK-wide, using the new financial assistance
powers in the UK Internal Market Bill.
- Funding will ramp up so that total domestic UK-wide funding
will at least match EU receipts, on average reaching around
£1.5 billion a year. In addition, to help local areas prepare
over 21/22 for introduction of the UKSPF, we will provide
additional UK funding to support our communities to pilot
programmes and new approaches.
- A portion of the Fund will target places most in need
across the UK, such as ex-industrial areas, deprived towns and
rural and coastal communities. This will prioritise investment
in people and skills tailored to local needs, investment in
communities and place, and investment for local business.
- A second portion of the Fund will be targeted differently
to people most in need through bespoke employment and skills
programmes.
- The Spending Review sets out the main strategic elements of
the UKSPF in the Heads of Terms. The government will set out
further details in a UK-wide investment framework in the spring
and confirm multiyear funding profiles at the next Spending
Review.
This is a long-term ongoing priority and we will continue to
revisit it at every future Budget and Spending Review until we
deliver on this promise.
