Prime Minister calls time on local leaders “going cap in hand to Westminster”

• Local leaders across England to get more money and control over investment in their communities.
• Plans will reduce the reliance on Whitehall, giving Mayors and local leaders the autonomy they need to get growth in every postcode.
• Government to provide leaders with £285m of funding to drive stronger local economies in every part of the country.

Local leaders will get more money, more powers and more control, ending the days of communities having to go cap in hand to Whitehall and putting decisions about their future in local hands - back where they belong.

At the Budget, Chancellor John Healey will pledge to unlock growth across Britain by putting communities in control of their economic future ending the era of power and resources being hoarded in Whitehall.

The Chancellor has put a downpayment on that promise, confirming plans to introduce Good Growth funding for local leaders across England - giving them the flexibility and authority to invest in what they deem the local priorities for growth without permission from Whitehall.

This could mean new homes where they're desperately needed, bringing empty shops and left behind high streets back to life or improving the transport links that give people a chance to get out there and find opportunities.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said:

I'm calling time on local leaders going cap in hand to Westminster. That is no way to run a country.

"When I became Prime Minister, I said that if a decision can be made closer to home, it should be.

Today we're putting that into practice, shifting power into the hands of the people who know their communities best.

The plans will reduce reliance on fragmented bidding pots hosted in Whitehall, with an initial £285 million in transitional seed funding being allocated by government next year to support Mayors and local leaders across England to ensure there is good growth in every postcode. Areas which are not yet strategic authorities will also be able to access a share of this money to unlock projects which will contribute to growth in their areas in the transitional period.   

The government will also confirm that it will work with Mayors to design a new £1.5 billion borrowing facility from 2028, giving them the access to capital needed to back the local priorities that will build growth in every postcode.

The approach builds on the work the Prime Minister oversaw during his time as Mayor of Greater Manchester, where a similar pioneering fund crowding in private investment through public investment is already backing housing, employment space and major infrastructure by giving local leaders the flexibility to invest in the projects that can make the biggest difference to their area.

The plans are a reflection of the Treasury, MHCLG and No10 North working hand-in-hand with local leaders to rewire the state and deliver growth in every postcode in Britain built on devolution, investment, innovation and jobs.

Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey said:

Local people have the right to decide their own future. Every community in Britain has potential for too many it has gone untapped and wasted while money and power has been held in Westminster. Mayors and
get projects moving, build homes and make the right decisions for their areas. By putting more power and funding into local hands, we can unlock growth, create opportunity and restore hope for the future.

Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Angela Rayner said:

We're putting a stop to mayors and local leaders being forced to come to Westminster cap in hand, asking for the power and funding that should rightfully be theirs. We're backing our leaders to deliver what
regeneration of the places people care so much about. That is what our devolution revolution really means real decisions made locally, backed by real money, so every town and city can shape its own future.

The government will also provide Strategic Authorities with £150 million of funding next year as support to strengthen their capacity and capability as their responsibilities and powers grow.

This cash will enable mayors to begin building the resource and expertise as they take on more powers and responsibilities, so they can manage the larger budgets they are responsible for, the delivery of more complex investment programmes and make full use of expanded devolved powers they are receiving.