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

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU on the levelling up agenda for the devolved Nations.

Our Levelling Up White Paper sets 12 national missions to level up the whole of the country including across all four home nations. We are taking action to ensure the benefits are felt in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, including putting local voices at the heart of decision making through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, launching an Innovation Accelerator in Glasgow City Region, and establishing a UK National Academy to provide a first-class education to every child in the UK. Ministers in this department are working closely with parliamentarians and other leaders from all parts of the UK. We are also investing £1.49 billion in City and Growth Deals in every part of Scotland, £791 million across Wales, and £617 million for deals covering the whole of Northern Ireland, helping to create jobs and boost local economies right across the UK.

The Levelling Up Fund will bring further meaningful investment to every part of the UK. Round 1 of the Levelling Up Fund saw over £341 million awarded to 29 successful projects in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Results for round 2 of the Fund, which will provide even more vital investment, will be announced by the end of the year.