Written statement to Parliament

European Regional Development Fund and European Social Fund: allocations 2014 to 2020

Written ministerial statement to Parliament on allocations from the ERDF and ESF.

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government
The Rt Hon Dr Vince Cable

I am today confirming how the €6.2 billion England allocation of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF) will be allocated.

The European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and part of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) will be allocated to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEP) areas for a full 7 year period through a new decentralised EU Growth Programme.

The government has given a commitment that the Growth Programme Funds will be allocated to Local Enterprise Partnership areas as an important new source of finance to stimulate local growth and jobs. This marks a significant shift from previous European programmes which were substantially centralised with limited local involvement in many key areas. Under this new model, decision-making powers will be transferred from Whitehall to local areas. LEPs and local partners will be in charge of European Funds that will provide significant investment in innovation, business, skills and employment in a common agenda for growth and jobs that will integrate effectively with wider LEP Strategic Plans.

In February, the Prime Minister negotiated a real-terms cut in the EU budget for the first time in history. As the independent Office for Budget Responsibility has said, the effect of this deal was to reduce its forecast for what taxpayers across all parts of the UK will pay by £3.5 billion over the next 5 years.

The government has set allocations that deliver the fairest split of funding across England, as far as EU rules allow. Allocations by LEP area for ERDF and ESF are set out in the annex. Allocations for the part of EAFRD being channelled through the Growth Programme will be published at a later date by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Gibraltar’s current allocation will be frozen at €9million and will be taken from the England allocation for ‘more developed’ regions (Gibraltar is counted in this category).

The government has today also confirmed the detailed allocations for the Highlands and Islands region in Scotland as €172 million and the allocation for West Wales as €1,783 million and for East Wales as €361 million.

All allocations are subject to final agreement on the EU regulations and the EU 2014 to 2020 Budget in the European Parliament. The European Commission will also need to agree the UK Government’s specific proposals.

Annex: LEP allocations for ERDF and ESF 2014 to 2020

LEP Allocation €m
Black Country 177.4
Buckinghamshire Thames Valley 13.9
Cheshire and Warrington 142.2
Coast to Capital 67.3
Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 592.9
Coventry and Warwickshire 136.0
Cumbria 91.4
Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire 249.7
Dorset 47.3
Enterprise M3 45.7
Gloucestershire 38.3
Greater Birmingham and Solihull 255.8
Greater Cambridge & Greater Peterborough 75.5
Greater Lincolnshire 133.5
Greater Manchester 415.6
Heart of the South West 118.3
Hertfordshire 69.5
Humber 102.4
Lancashire 266.3
Leeds City Region 391.2
Leicester and Leicestershire 126.3
Liverpool City Region 221.9
London 748.6
New Anglia 94.5
North Eastern 539.6
Northamptonshire 55.0
Oxfordshire LEP 19.4
Sheffield City Region 203.4
Solent 43.1
South East 185.9
South East Midlands 88.3
Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire 161.6
Swindon and Wiltshire 43.6
Tees Valley 202.6
Thames Valley Berkshire 28.7
The Marches 113.7
West of England 68.6
Worcestershire 68.1
York and North Yorkshire 97.5
Published 27 June 2013