§ Mr. ThomasonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made with the single regeneration budget; when he will he announcing the 515W results of the second bidding round of the single regeneration budget challenge fund; and if he will make a statement. [5596]
§ Mr. CurryThe single regeneration budget is making an unprecedented contribution to local regeneration. Resources for the single regeneration budget for 1996–97 and the two subsequent years will total nearly £3.8 billion. Of that total, over £1.3 billion will go to support schemes approved under the challenge fund. The remainder will support on-going initiatives and existing commitments under programmes taken into the single regeneration budget including English Partnerships, urban development corporations, housing action trusts, city challenge and estate action.
Round 1 of the challenge fund, under which some 200 schemes were approved, started in April 1995. These schemes stand to attract, over their lifetime of up to seven years, some £1.1 billion in challenge fund support, and some £2.5 billion in private sector investment.
Round 2 of the challenge fund built on the success of round 1 and has attracted a wide range of high quality bids. We have decided to approve 172 bids. Many of those were unsuccessful in round 1 and were greatly improved and successfully resubmitted by local partnerships for round 2. On initial estimates, the successful bids should attract over their lifetime over £1 billion in challenge fund support, and some £2.5 billion in private sector investment. Details of the successful individual bids will be published tomorrow, and will be placed in the Library of the House and circulated to hon. Members.
Taken together, the schemes approved under rounds 1 and 2 of the challenge fund should create or safeguard 500,000 jobs, support over 80,000 new businesses, complete or improve nearly 170,000 homes and support over 20,000 voluntary and community groups. Over a third of these schemes are specifically directed towards ethnic minority communities.
Following the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Budget statement, provision totalling £250 million has been made for third and fourth rounds of the challenge fund. The third round will operate on the same lines as round 2. It will be launched next year for schemes starting from April 1997, with planned resources of £50 million in 1997–98 and £150 million in 1998–99. Resources for later years will be determined in the light of subsequent public expenditure settlements.