Hundreds of millions of EU funds unspent
Yorkshire is lagging behind every other region in England in securing hundreds of millions of pounds of funding made available to it by the EU.
A report out this morning by a committee of MPs warns that delays at Whitehall in signing off projects mean UK regions risk missing out on European funds specifically set aside for them to boost economic growth.
Projects can bid for EU funding only once they have secured match-funding from the Government, and the report says Minister are being “cautious” in agreeing to hand over the cash.
Yorkshire has so far secured just 54 per cent of the £505m set aside for it by Brussels.
The money must be spent by 2015 or will be lost to the region.