Regional development agency

East of
England

London

South East England

South West England

East
Midlands

West
Midlands

Yorkshire and
the Humber

North
East
England

North West
England

In the United Kingdom, a regional development agency (RDA) was a non-departmental public body established for the purpose of development, primarily economic, of one of England's Government Office regions. There was one RDA for each of the NUTS level 1 regions of England. Similar activities were carried out in Wales by the Welsh Government Department of Economy and Transport, in Northern Ireland by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment and in Scotland by Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

In June 2010 the UK government announced plans to abolish the RDAs on 31 March 2012, with a view to future economic development being undertaken by Local Enterprise Partnerships.^[1]. There will be no direct replacement for the Regional Development Agencies and the Local Enterprise Partnerships will not receive any funding from central government, in contrast to the substantial budgets administered by the RDAs.^[2]

Background

The RDAs were created following the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998,^[3] and have had their scope and powers enhanced in the years since. The statutory objectives of the RDAs are, at present:

1. to further economic development and regeneration;
2. to promote business efficiency and competitiveness;
3. to promote employment;
4. to enhance the development and application of skills relevant to employment, and
5. to contribute to sustainable development.

Funding

The RDAs were funded by six different central government departments, those being:

• Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
• Department for Communities and Local Government
• Department for Energy and Climate Change
• Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
• Department for Culture, Media and Sport
• UK Trade and Investment

The funding from these departments is pooled, and then allocated to the different RDAs. The total funding known as the 'Single Pot' is as below.

• 2006/2007 — £2.244 billion
• 2007/2008 — £2.297 billion
• 2008/2009 — £2.193 billion
• 2009/2010 — £2.260 billion
• 2010/2011 — £1.760 billion

The RDAs had taken over responsibility from Government Offices for administering European Union regional development funds, but the enlargement of the EU means this is likely to reduce in its significance to the UK from 2013.

In 2009 a study by accountants PriceWaterhouseCoopers showed that RDAs were generating £1 for the local economy for every £1 of public spending, though this figure was estimated to rise to £4.50 when long-term investments in infrastructure matured.^[4]

Structure

Eight of the nine RDAs reported to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the sole exception being the London Development Agency (LDA), which reports directly to the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.

Each RDA was led by a Chair and a Board of 15 people, appointed by BIS ministers (except in London, where the Mayor appoints). The RDA Chairs were all business people, while the Boards were made up of representatives of business, local government, trade unions and voluntary organisations.

The day to day running of the RDA was the responsibility of the Chief Executive. The Chief Executive was appointed by the Board, subject to approval by BIS ministers (or the London Mayor in the case of the LDA).

Operation

The objectives of the RDAs were set out in the Regional Economic Strategy (RES) of each region. The RES was a document created and maintained by the RDA for the whole region, i.e. it was not simply a document to guide the RDA, it was intended to guide the work of other organisations also. Each RDA updated their RES on a regular basis (approximately every three years) by consulting widely with their partners, and stakeholders in the region, including local government, voluntary organisations, private organisations, and other interested groups. The RES must be submitted to the BIS for formal approval.

The RDAs seek to achieve their objectives in a variety of ways. The most obvious of these is by funding projects aimed at addressing them, either directly from the RDA, or indirectly through a funded body. Secondly, they seek to influence other stakeholders in the region to take action themselves. Thirdly, they seek to influence the policies of central government where they might impact on the Region.

The RDAs workd together in a number of areas, with different RDAs taking the 'lead' role in varying policy areas. Additionally, the RDAs jointly fund a central secretariat to co-ordinate this activity.^[5] Finally, the three northern RDAs (Northwest Regional Development Agency, Yorkshire Forward and One NorthEast) collaborate on The Northern Way.

Each RDA had a Science and Industry Council (SIC) made up of business, university and public sector experts. This SIC advised the RDA on Science and Innovation Investments. Each region had a slightly different focus, but all SICs contribute to the national Technology Strategy [2] (owned by the Technology Strategy Board).^[6] This was done via a Strategic Advisory Group on which the Chairs of each Science and Industry Council sit.

Abolition and replacement

The new Conservative-LibDem coalition government has announced its intentions to abolish the existing RDAs as part of cost-saving plans outlined in the June 2010 emergency UK Budget. The new administration will encourage the formation of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) to carry out some of the functions currently carried out by RDAs. In Greater London, these responsibilities may be assumed by the Mayor of London.^[7] This can be understood in the wider context of the coalition government dismantling elements of regional government including reducing support for the government offices and ceasing funding the Regional Improvement and Efficiency Partnerships (RIEPs).

List

The entries of the individual Regional Development Agencies:

• East of England Development Agency (EEDA), based in Cambridge
• East Midlands Development Agency (emda), based in Nottingham
• London Development Agency (LDA)
• One NorthEast (ONE), based in Newcastle
• Northwest Regional Development Agency, based in Warrington
• South West of England Regional Development Agency, based in Exeter
• South East England Development Agency (SEEDA), based in Guildford
• Advantage West Midlands, based in Birmingham
• Yorkshire Forward, based in Leeds

References

External links

• England's RDAs
• Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform - England's Regional Development Agencies: Introduction