Monday, 27 June 2016

Brexit: and Local Enterprise Partnerships in the South West

This blog has already reported on local government fears and demands following Thursday's vote:
Futures Forum: Brexit: and devolution in the South West

 It seems that Devon's bid for devolution from Westminster depends on funding from Brussels, as the East Devon Watch blog reports:
Devon and our Local Enterprise Partnership’s dependence on EU funding | East Devon Watch

 And these questions were being asked many months ago:
Our Local Enterprise Partnership and “Brexit” | East Devon Watch

 The EDW site also republishes a piece from today's Observer - on Cornwall's dependence on EU funding and the central role of the Local Enterprise Partnership:

Cornwall fears loss of funding after backing Brexit
Steven Morris Sunday 26 June 2016 
Region was on course to benefit from £2.5bn of funding between 2000 and 2020 but voted 56% in favour of leaving EU
According to figures from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the region was on course by 2020 to have benefited from a total of £2.5bn of funding – EU cash matched with public and private investment – since the turn of the century.
In the hours that followed the referendum result, Cornwall council and the local enterprise partnership (LEP) sought reassurances that they would not lose their funding and were mocked on social media, where critics claimed they had voted out and then asked if they could keep the EU cash anyway.
Sandra Rothwell, chief executive of the LEP, told the Guardian it wasn’t like that. “Cornwall was one of those places with a high percentage for leave and we’re not asking Europe if we can keep the money anyway. Our focus is on getting a message to national government: We have a clearly evidenced economic need, we have very clear plans of what we want to do. We have been delivering that plan on the basis of investment up to 2020. That plan needs to continue.”
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