Denham: Govt refusing to invest in growth

John Denham, shadow business secretary, commented on the regional growth fund:
“By cutting funding for regional growth by two thirds the Tory-led government is choking off the funding needed for regions to grow and create the jobs our economy needs. The government is allocating £1.4 billion over three years to projects, two-thirds less than the £1.4 billion a year Labour were investing through the regional development agencies alone.
“The desire to cut too far and too fast has caused growth to be revised down and the unemployment forecast to rise, all while government is holding back support for businesses looking for investment which will help regions to create jobs and ease reliance on the public sector.
“There are more losers than winners with today’s announcement. Labour would have added an additional £200 million to the funding today through a repeat of the bankers bonus tax, a quick but effective way of supporting growth and creating jobs. Vince Cable will have to explain why hundreds of viable projects for growth won’t go ahead across the country.
“The Tory-led government need to rethink their growth strategy and invest in our regions, and get a grip on the scale of the challenge facing the country today. We cannot afford their wasted year to turn into two.”