Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to introduce a new regeneration strategy for coalfield communities.

The Government is committed to helping every part of the country share in prosperity, unlocking investment in local areas and driving regeneration forward. In recent years, the Government has invested in supporting economic growth and prosperity in regions across the country, such as through City Deals and with the Local Growth Fund in England.

The Government’s flagship Industrial Strategy has place at its heart. Driving growth across the whole of the UK by building on the strengths and opportunities of different places is central to its wider ambition of boosting productivity and earning power. To build an economy that works for all we must therefore help all our cities and towns to reach their full potential. Our varied approach will support places that are struggling as well as building on clusters of high productivity in different parts of the country. We will publish our Industrial Strategy White Paper later this year, setting out our plan for full and long-term delivery.

The Government is developing the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, a programme of investment to reduce inequalities between communities and increase productivity across the UK, in line with our modern Industrial Strategy. The Government will work with the all devolved administrations at the earliest opportunity as a part of this process, in advance of a full public consultation. We welcome the input of all stakeholders in this process, and encourage communities to bring ambitious regeneration proposals forward.