§ Mr. Robert Atkinsasked the Secretary of State for Industry (1) what was the total regional aid paid to the North-East as opposed to the North-West;
(2) what was the total regional aid paid in 1978 to: Merseyside, Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Lancashire, respectively.
§ Mr. David MitchellI regret that the information is not readily available in the form requested. Total expenditure in 1977–78 on regional preferential assistance to industry in areas for which 535W separate totals are available was as follows:
£ million Northern region (including the North-East special development area) 155.8 North-Western region 66.5 of which Merseyside special development area 44.2 NOTES: All figures are gross and include payments to nationalised industries. The major items of expenditure included are regional development grants, selective financial assistance under section 7 of the Industry Act and expenditure on land and factories. Apart from expenditure on land and factories there is no predetermined allocation of resources between separate areas or regions. Expenditure depends therefore on the level of applications from eligible firms within the areas or regions. The Northern region for this purpose comprises Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Durham, Cleveland and Cumbria (excluding Ulverston, Grange-over-Sands, Dalston-in-Furness and Barrow-in-Furness). The North-Western region comprises Merseyside, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire the Peak District of North Derbyshire, Ulverston, Grange-over-Sands, Dalston-in-Furness and Barrow-in-Furness.