At the beginning of March this year, as part of his Budget speech, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the Levelling Up Fund and invited applications from local authorities across the UK. The £4.8bn initiative was the latest in a line of government programmes to promote regional development and counter the economic supremacy of London and the south-east.
The fund, making good on the government’s 2019 election promises, would “support town centre and high-street regeneration, local transport projects, and cultural and heritage assets”. This wouldn’t be a “levelling down”, a race to the bottom; instead, it would bring investment in infrastructure and jobs across the country.
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