Chancellor George Osbourne has unveiled the latest raft of government measures intended to grow businesses in rural Britain. On Thursday, the Chancellor unveiled a series of planning reforms and commitments to improving transport, childcare and broadband coverage through partnerships with the private sector.

image expired

The government's plan includes a relaxation of rules on building on greenfield sites on the outskirts of villages and market towns. Construction of 'Starter homes' will be permitted on land where permissions for regular market housing would be refused.

Unveiling the Rural Productivity Plan with Defra Secretary Liz Truss, the Chancellor said, “For too long the British economy has been reliant on businesses based in our cities and towns. We want to create a One Nation economy that taps into the potential of all parts of our country.

“That means setting the right conditions for rural communities and businesses to thrive, investing in education and skills, improving rural infrastructure, and allowing rural villages to thrive and grow.”

Reacting to the plan, Lucy Grove, Head of Policy at the National Housing Federation, said, “Young people and families are being priced out of rural villages and market towns across the nation by an acute lack of affordable housing and key infrastructure. This is draining our countryside of its vital workforce and hurting rural businesses.

“Today’s announcement is a welcome step in the right direction. Homes at prices to suit a range of incomes and personal needs, including Starter Homes, are needed in communities up and down the country to ease the rural housing crisis.”

Broadband

The government also made promises to improve improve mobile and broadband coverage by 2017. Though ministers promised to ensure that 95 percent of the country has access to superfast broadband by 2017, this has been promised since the early days of the Coalition government.  

Parliamentary committees, which oversee the work of government departments, have been highly critical of its management of the broadband roll-out, which was initially slated for 2015. Concerns over delays to the scheme were augmented in 2013 when provider BT gained monopoly control of the local contracts, which led to consternation over the cost and transparency.

Furthermore, the EFRA Committee, which assesses Defra’s work, urged the government to set a target date for the delivery of the superfast broadband to the last 5% of UK premises back in February. At the same time - ahead of the complications that led to a U-turn on BPS form submissions earlier this year - the Committee warned that the government’s move to digital-by-default services was “Premature” given the widespread lack of access to adequate communications technology in the countryside.

As well as the plans for housing and infrastructure, ministers made commitments to cut ‘red tape’ for rural businesses, including promising 20,000 fewer farm inspections in the current parliament, more apprenticeships in food and farming enterprises and cuts to corporation tax.

The Chancellor’s plan includes the following commitments:

• Amending planning rules to allow Starter Homes to be built on Rural Exception Sites for the first time. This will allow local areas to allocate more sites for Starter Homes specifically for people who already live in the area, or have an existing family or employment connection to the area.
• Working with private sector providers to assess alternative solutions to deliver broadband further into rural areas.
• Improving rural transport connections by feeding the views of rural stakeholders into the second Road Investment Strategy for 2020 to 2025.
• Ensuring fairer funding for rural schools and work with schools and colleges that are currently underperforming or ‘coasting’ to ensure that, where appropriate, they are entering into collaborative arrangements and formal partnerships to raise standards.
• Encouraging rural Local Authorities and providers to make innovative early expressions of interest to deliver 30 hours of free childcare to working parents.
• Setting a new ambition to provide high speed broadband to businesses in all Enterprise Zones in rural areas.
• Considering proposals for increased devolution of powers and greater freedoms to maximise economic growth in areas across the country that put in place strong and accountable local governance.
• Improving connectivity by providing improved transport connections for businesses and passengers in local areas with fifteen brand new routes on the Regional Air Connectivity funding shortlist.

The government’s targets under its productivity plan are:

• Creating strong conditions for rural business growth – cutting red tape, including 20,000 farm inspections to be cut this Parliament, and cuts to corporation tax.
• Delivering better mobile coverage – ensuring 98% indoor coverage for 4G by 2017.
• Providing modern transport connections – improving connectivity of rural areas including through the £15 billion Road Investment Strategy and the £38 billion rail investment programme.
• Creating access to Enterprise Zones in rural areas – giving 100% business rate discounts on businesses located within them, saving each company up to £275,000 over five years.
• Providing high-quality education – raising standards through fairer funding and working with underperforming schools.
• Expanding apprenticeships in rural areas – tripling the number of food and farming apprenticeships from 6,000 to 18,000.
• Rolling out fast and reliable broadband – making superfast broadband available for 95% of UK premises by 2017 and working with providers to address challenges reaching the final 5%.
• Improving planning and regulation for businesses – supporting delivery of Starter Homes on rural exception sites and reviewing the planning constraints affecting rural areas.
• More devolution of powers – calling on local areas to propose what further powers they would like to see handed to them.
• Providing better housing for future generations – increasing the availability of housing in rural areas to ensure our villages thrive.