Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, over what period local areas will be able to bid for funding from the Levelling Up Fund.

The Government is launching a new Levelling Up Fund worth £4 billion for England, that will attract up to £800 million for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in the usual way. This will invest in local infrastructure that has a visible impact on people and their communities and will support economic recovery.

The Fund will be open to all local areas and allocated competitively. In its assessment process, the Fund will adopt the approach in the refreshed Green Book to ensure that investment supports levelling up and spreads opportunity across the UK – with projects assessed on how well they deliver policy aims and their impact on local areas.

We will publish a prospectus for the Fund and launch the first round of competitions in the New Year.