The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid, is being urged to Back the Great South West in the Budget and help kick start ambitious plans to create the UK’s first clean energy powerhouse.
A letter has been written to Mr Javid on behalf of a powerful alliance of the region’s Local Enterprise Partnerships, local government, business leaders, universities and colleges calling for official Government recognition of the Great South West in the Budget and an initial £2 million of pump priming investment.
The Great South West alliance is aiming to deliver a massive £45 billion boost to the region’s economy and create 190,000 new jobs by 2035.
The message is supported by the Western Morning News' Back the Great South West campaign which kicked off in the wake of the Brexit referendum to fight for investment and recognition for the region.
Great South West Chair Steve Hindley said: “With Government support, our ambition is to unlock the Great South West region’s huge potential to become the UK’s clean energy powerhouse, harnessing the unparalleled scale of our natural assets and the expertise of our world-leading research institutions.”
John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council and local government lead on the Great South West partnership added: “By everyone pulling together, we are forging a powerful alliance to fly the flag for the Great South West.
"We want to increase prosperity to our region and respond positively to climate change with a blueprint for clean energy growth. With the Government’s backing we can and will do it.”
The Great South West partners have set out their vision for the future in a prospectus for growth, “Securing Our Future”, which is backed by a cross-party alliance of the region’s MPs led by South West Devon MP, Sir Gary Streeter.
Sir Gary said: “We have so much innovation and leadership to offer in developing green and marine energy technologies, key elements to the journey to our nation’s net zero carbon commitment and to tackling climate change. Government funding to support our development will see these skills and resources unlocked to the benefit of the region and the country as a whole.”
