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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many bids local authorities in the second category can submit to the Levelling Up Fund (a) in the first tranche of bidding and (b) over the lifetime of the Fund.

The £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund will invest in infrastructure that improves everyday life across the UK, including regenerating town centres and high streets, upgrading local transport and investing in cultural and heritage assets.

The Fund will be allocated competitively, and funding will be targeted towards places in England, Scotland and Wales with the most need, as measured by an index taking into account the following place characteristics: need for economic recovery and growth, need for improved transport connectivity, and need for regeneration.   The bandings do not represent eligibility criteria, nor the amount or number of bids a place can submit. Bids from categories 2 and 3 will still be considered for funding on their merits of deliverability, value for money and strategic fit, and could still be successful if they are of exceptionally high quality.

Further detail on how the Levelling Up Fund will operate from 2022-23 onwards will be set out later this year.