TheBusinessDesk.tv: Budget promises millions for Yorkshire
MILLIONS of pounds will be invested in Yorkshire on improved transpennine rail services, ultra-fast broadband and unlocking blocked development opportunities following the Budget.
Chancellor George Osborne agreed to fund Network Rail’s £130m ‘Northern Hub’ project, handed Leeds and Bradford £15m to invest in digital infrastructure and promised local enterprise partnerships in the county an extra £71m through the Government’s Growing Places Fund which helps kickstart stalled projects.
The Budget also offered broader support for business through measures including a cut in corporation tax, an ‘above the line’ R&D tax credit and the expansion of the proposed Business Finance Partnership which will channel funds to midcap companies.
Tim West, tax partner at Ernst & Young in Leeds, said: “The surprise extra cut in the corporation tax rate will be welcomed by businesses but the big news remains the Government’s focus on the international environment, which will encourage companies to locate, invest and employ here.
“Combined with the announcement on the 50p rate, it reinforces the message that the UK is open for business.
“Add to this the patent regime and the new ‘above the line’ tax credit, to be introduced in 2013, the UK’s tax regime is coming close to best in class.”
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