London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 12, 2025

Levelling up funding process is broken, says Tory mayor Andy Street

Levelling up funding process is broken, says Tory mayor Andy Street

The Conservative mayor for the West Midlands has lashed out at the process for allocating levelling up funds, calling for an end to Whitehall's "broken begging bowl culture".

In an angry statement, Andy Street said he wanted ministers to justify why "the majority" of bids in his region had been rejected.

The West Midlands received £155m from a £2.1bn pot of levelling up funds.

The PM has argued the most deprived areas would benefit from the money.

Speaking from Morecambe in Lancashire - which will get £50m to build an eco-tourism attraction - Rishi Sunak said his government was "completely committed to levelling up across the United Kingdom".

He said the process was transparent and that areas which had been unsuccessful this time would have another chance to apply for funding in a third round.

The idea of "levelling up" - or reducing regional inequality - was a key part of Boris Johnson's 2019 election campaign. Its aim was to close the gap between rich and poor parts of the country by improving services such as education, broadband and transport.

As part of the Levelling Up Fund, launched in 2020, local authorities can apply for money from central government to pay for regeneration and transport projects. The first round of funding was awarded in October 2021.

A total of 111 areas across the UK have been awarded money from the second round including £50m for a new train line between Cardiff Bay and Cardiff Central Station and £27m for a ferry in Shetland.

The north-west region was the biggest winner, securing £354m and Conservative Lancashire MP Sara Britcliffe said she was "over the moon" her local area would receive money to refurbish Accrington Market Hall.

However, others have complained about the process for allocating the money.

The Eden Project in Morecambe will be a sister site to an existing attraction in Cornwall

Venting his frustration on Twitter, Mr Street said: "Fundamentally, this episode is just another example as to why Whitehall's bidding and begging-bowl culture is broken, and the sooner we can decentralise and move to proper fiscal devolution the better.

"The centralised system of London civil servants making local decisions is flawed, and I cannot understand why the levelling up funding money was not devolved for local decision-makers to decide on what's best for their areas.

"The sooner we can decentralise and move to proper fiscal devolution the better."

His concerns were echoed by Philip Rycroft, former top civil servant at the now-defunct Brexit Department, who described the process as "completely crackers".

"£2bn of public money is being distributed across the nation by a bunch of civil servants who have probably not been to the vast majority of the places they are distributing money to - how can this be sensible," he asked at a think tank Reform event.

Head of the Local Government Information Unit think tank Jonathan Carr-West called the system "crazy" and expressed concern that councils were putting "huge" resources into applying for the funds, diverting money from "other useful and necessary things".

Labour's shadow levelling up secretary Lisa Nandy said her party would end the "competitive-style bidding" process but would not cancel projects that had already been given the green light.

Defending the mechanism, Business Secretary Grant Shapps said: "The truth is you've got to run a country somehow, you've got to have some kind of system in place.

"Not everything can be decided in the local town hall or by the local mayor," he told the BBC's Newscast podcast.

He said he agreed with the concept that "the closer you govern to people the better" but "in the end we are one nation, you've got to put the money somewhere, decisions have to be made somehow".

He went on to praise Mr Street who he said had brought "huge resources" to his local area.

Other projects set to get funding include:

*  £40m for a carbon-neutral education campus in Blackpool town centre

*  £20m to go towards the regeneration of Gateshead Quays, including a new arena, exhibition centre and hotels

*  £5.1m to build new female changing rooms in 20 rugby clubs across Northern Ireland

*  Just over £19m to improve public spaces in Hackney Central, east London

*  £45m to help the Port of Dover operate more efficiently, including adding more border control points

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
×