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

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to support economic growth in coastal communities.

On 26 January, the Government announced £46 million of funding to 67 projects around England and Scotland’s coast. All of these will make a big contribution to supporting growth and jobs in these areas. In total, the Coastal Communities Fund is now supporting 211 projects across the UK with a value of £116 million and is forecast to support nearly 12,400 new jobs, and provide over 6,000 apprenticeships and training places.

In addition to the Coastal Communities Fund, many other Government programmes also support growth in coastal areas. For example, over £500 million was committed through Growth Deals in July 2014 for projects to improve the economic competitiveness of coastal areas, and a number of successful Enterprise Zones are encouraging investment in coastal locations.

The Government remains committed to supporting growth in all areas of the country, including coastal communities.