£38M Extra Funding for Cambridgeshire's Economy

29 January 2015, 06:18 | Updated: 29 January 2015, 06:19

An extra £38 million will be spent on Cambridgeshire's economy, between 2016-2021.

The Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership has agreed an expansion to its Growth Deal with the Government which will see an extra £38m invested in Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough between 2016 and 2021.

This is in addition to the £71.1m of funding committed by the Government on 7 July 2014.  Over the lifetime of its Deal (2015-2021) the Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that up to 15,500 new jobs could be created, 10,000 new homes built and that it has the potential to generate £210m public and private investment.

The additional proposed projects include:
- The construction of a new Ely Southern Bypass, 1.7km of road connecting the A142 to Stuntney Causeway and relieving significant congestion in the city, supporting 4,500 jobs in Ely & 3,000 new homes.

- A £16.6m extension of the LEP's successful Growing Places Fund initiative, a loan and grant funding programme to provide funding to unlock residential and commercial development as well as business growth and up to 6,000 jobs.

- Contribute towards the creation of an Institute of Advanced Construction and a Highways & Civil Engineering Academy to create a new national centre for higher level construction skills, and a local centre to provide skilled labour for transport schemes.

- Development work for upgrading of M11 Junction 8 interchange, a scheme which has the potential to support significant acceleration of homes and the development of 18 ha of business land.

The Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Growth Deal is part of a long term plan to devolve at least £12 billion from central government to local economies. The plan aims for every part of the country to be a motor of growth for the national economy - building on the strength of the Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough area.
 
Alongside the Growth Deal, Government is also committing to support the work of the Mildenhall, Alconbury and Molesworth (MAM) Working Group which has been established following a US Department of Defence (DoD) review of its requirement for bases for US forces in Europe.  As announced by the MOD on 8th January, the DoD has confirmed it will withdraw its base at RAF Mildenhall and consolidate activities currently located at RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth at RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire.  These bases have long been part of the local communities and it is essential that Government and local partners do everything possible both to support the individuals affected by these forthcoming changes, but also to consider how best to quickly deploy the skills and assets at these sites for the benefit of their local economies.  

The Prime Minister said:

"Giving local communities the power and the money to unlock growth and development and make the spending decisions that work for them is a key part of our long-term economic plan to secure a brighter future for Britain and ensure a recovery for all.

"And this is happening across Cambridge and Peterborough, with more money announced today for key projects to boost the local economy as part of the multi-million pound expansion of the Government's Growth Deals.

"And because the money will be in the control of a partnership of local community, business and civic leaders it means it will go on the things that really matter to people and businesses here.

"That is what Growth Deals are all about, backing local people and investing in the infrastructure, housing and skills that will drive forward local economies, create more jobs and opportunities for hardworking people and supercharge all parts of our country."

The Deputy Prime Minister said:

"A quiet revolution is underway in Cambridge, Peterborough and across the country, as Growth Deals signal the death of the culture where Whitehall calls the shots. I've seen for myself the difference it makes to give this region more power over skills, over business support, over infrastructure spending.

"I am delighted to announce the expansion of the Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough Growth Deal today.

"The Coalition Government has been relentless in our efforts to sort out the public finances and set firm foundations for growth. Growth Deals help create a stronger economy and a fairer society by boosting local economies, and providing more jobs, better transport and affordable homes."
 
Mark Reeve, Chairman of the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership (LEP), said: "We have worked hard to secure an additional £38 million of funding from Government to support the growth of our local economy by enabling 15,500 new jobs and allowing 10,000 new homes to be built.

 "The Ely Southern Bypass is a long overdue scheme that will have a significant positive impact by enabling local growth and easing local congestion. The upgrading of Junction 8 of the M11 at Stansted Airport will unlock new homes and open up land for a business growth. Our extended Growing Places Fund will allow us to overcome even more barriers to growth. With a number of important infrastructure schemes in the pipeline, we need to ensure that we have a steady supply of trained workers to undertake the work, which is why the Institute of Advanced Construction and Highways & Civil Engineering Academy are such important elements of our plan.

 "We are proud that our LEP, working with key partners, has been able to secure the funding needed to make it happen. Our focus now is to work with Government to find ways to bring forward the funding as soon as possible."