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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Shared Prosperity Fund is planned to be allocated on the basis of the Barnett formula.

My Department continues to develop the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), a domestic programme of investment to tackle inequalities between communities by raising productivity across the whole of the UK, especially in those parts of our country whose economies are furthest behind.

We have committed to engaging the devolved administrations to ensure the UKSPF works for places in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and will launch a public consultation for the whole of the UK later this year. Decisions on the operation and allocation of the UKSPF will be made following the consultation and will be subject to the spending review next year.