CBI welcomes regional growth bids

Date: 13th April 2011

The government is now accepting pitches for the first round of bidding for the Regional Growth Fund, it has been announced.

News of the bidding has been welcomed by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) which urged the government to award funds to bidders most likely to stimulate job creation.

Rhian Kelly, CBI director for business environment, said: "We need to encourage growth throughout the UK and it is right that public money should only be spent on schemes that will genuinely help with job creation.

"The successful bids should help deliver this and are to be congratulated on the vision and scope of their pitches. It is encouraging to see so many different sectors are getting a boost."

Ms Kelly also claimed that when the second bidding round begins, the coalition's limited budget should be awarded to projects that will offer "real returns for all parts of the country".

Posted by Emily Smith