Budget

In a Budget that was meant to be all about growth, what was in it for the cities that will drive this economic growth?

Various national policies will affect different cities, from corporation tax reductions and the Entrepreneurs Relief Scheme to sector specific announcements on manufacturing and green measures. But three policy areas jump out as having a particular impact on cities: Enterprise Zones; improving the efficiency of planning, and skills support.

Enterprise Zones have been the subject of feverish speculation for weeks; our recent report highlighted that it would be vital for these Zones to learn the lessons from the 1980s zones and focus less on physical development; much more on jobs. So has this happened?

It’s clear that lessons have been learned from the 1980s – for example, the zones will be in areas with real potential to grow, rather than deprived areas. And there are real benefits for local enterprise partnerships which get one of these zones: up to 100% business rate discount for new businesses, keeping business rates for 25 years etc.

In addition, this looks like a way of introducing Tax Increment Financing quickly – and this is very positive if it allows local authorities to borrow against future revenue streams in order to invest in transport or other local economic assets. It’s also good news that LEPs are finally being given some teeth and being encouraged to work together. But – while we welcome policies that put cities at the heart of economic growth - the big test for EZs will be whether these incentives will be enough to create the new jobs areas need. More on this tomorrow. 

On planning, it’s positive news that the government is introducing a presumption in favour of sustainable development and an emphasis on jobs and growth. There will be pilots of land auctions, plus stricter deadlines will be introduced, they’ll remove the Brownfield target and relax land use policies. But again, the big question is in the implementation. Will these measures be enough to side step nimbyism to really improve planning conditions for areas with most potential to grow?   

Skills and innovation are one of the biggest barriers to cities realising their economic potential, so it was good to hear announcements on funding for 40,000 new apprenticeships, increasing work experience placements to 100,000 and access to higher level internships for SMEs. Investment in new centres for innovation at nine universities plus £100m for new science facilities in Cambridge, Norwich, Harwell and Daresbury will also generate benefits for those local areas. 

More on the detail of the budget in the next few days…