§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for Industry (1) what has been the total number and value of offers of regional assistance made to companies in (a) the West Midlands and (b) the Wolverhampton travel-to-work area for each of the last 12 months;
(2) how many new firms and new jobs have been created as a result of offers of financial assistance received under section 7 of the Industry Act 1972 in (a)the West Midlands and (b)the Wolverhampton travel-to-work area for each of the last 12 months.
§ Mr. MacGregorSince Wolverhampton is not an assisted area for the purposes of the Industry Act 1972 regional financial assistance is not available to firms there.
The only assisted area in the West Midlands is Oswestry and firms there are eligible for section 7 assistance under the Industry Act 1972 but not eligible for regional development grant payments as it is an intermediate area. There have been no offers of assistance under section 7 to companies in Oswestry in the last 12 months.
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