Government funding of £178 million to support new homes and jobs in the region has been cautiously welcomed by the East of England Regional Assembly today (12th December).
The funding will support the development of new homes by providing new transport facilities, community buildings and green spaces and opening up sites for development in town centres.
In the East of England, £142.5 million has been allocated to local authorities in growth areas, nearly half of the national pot, and a further £36 million to the three recently designated growth points of Haven Gateway, Norwich and Thetford (See Notes to Editors).
Speaking at the Regional Planning Panel meeting today (12th December), Panel Chairman Cllr Derrick Ashley said: “This funding will help local authorities in the East of England to deliver growth in jobs and homes and we are pleased the region’s case for more Government investment is beginning to be recognised.
“Although it is a welcome start, delivering the scale of housing growth proposed for some of our towns and cities will require much more Government funding.
“Recognition of the growth challenges facing in the East of England must also be carried through to other Government funding decisions such as on rail and public transport and major roads such as the A11 and A120.”
The region’s growth areas include Bedford Marston Vale, Luton & South Bedfordshire, London Harlow Stansted, Stevenage, North Herts, Cambridgeshire, Peterborough, Chelmsford & Braintree, Welwyn Hatfield, Dacorum, St Albans and St Edmundsbury.
The Government announced last week that it had allocated a total of £560 million nationally to support housing growth between 2008 and 2011 with a further £172 million to be allocated between 2009 and 2011 (See Notes to Editors).
The East of England Regional Assembly has been calling on Government to support the half a million new homes proposed for the region by 2021 with more investment.
Posted: 12/12/2007