WIREDGOV

LGA Chairman Lord Porter responds to EU funding guarantees given by the Chancellor at the Conservative Party Conference.

"We are pleased that the Government has accepted our call to provide some much-needed further guarantees around EU regeneration funding.

"The Chancellor's pledge that local areas with existing EU funding agreements signed off by the time we exit the EU will receive replacement funding once we leave is encouraging.

"However, the vast majority of EU regeneration funding remains tied up in thousands of proposals which are yet to receive government approval. This money will be vital to create jobs, build infrastructure and boost local growth across the country.

"The Government has also committed to honour existing agreed projects reliant on EU money and those signed-off by the Autumn Statement Between now and November 23, the Government needs to pull out all the stops in working with local areas to get the hundreds of projects currently in development and at the cusp of funding agreements over the finishing line.

"The Chancellor must also use the Autumn Statement to go further and guarantee that local areas will receive every penny of the £5.3 billion in EU funding, or replacement funding, they are expecting by the end of the decade. This needs to happen regardless of whether decisions over which projects it should be spent on have been made or not.

"This is the best way to fully protect local regeneration plans, flagship infrastructure projects, employment and skills schemes and local growth for all - priorities for both central and local government."