Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, has announced plans for the biggest package of support for local businesses in more than 20 years.

The £75m Business Growth Package will work to attract new businesses to the Liverpool City Region, help existing businesses grow, and generate more than 2000 jobs for local workers in this first phase of support.

The £75m Business Growth Package will include:

• £20m loan fund for local businesses to invest in creating jobs and boosting productivity
• £7m inward investment facilitation fund
• £15m to support SMEs in the event of a No Deal Exit from the European Union
• Intensive scale-up programme for tech-led and tech-enabled SMEs
• Skills and apprenticeship training for up to 1,500 young people

It will also make it easier than ever for companies in the Liverpool City Region to access support, through a new growth company – Growth Platform – established with the Local Enterprise Partnership to manage business growth, investment and sector development services locally.

Companies will be able to apply for support from late in the autumn.  The support will be open to all businesses with a focus on high growth and technology companies.  The money will be recycled wherever possible – ensuring truly inclusive growth is nurtured, so our resources can be used to support more businesses and create more jobs in future.

Speaking about the announcement, during a visit to the UK’s leading robotics integration company, CNC Robotics, Steve Rotheram said:

“The Liverpool City Region is the fastest-growing city region in the country, but I will not be satisfied until the benefits of devolution are felt in all of our communities.

“Our £75m Business Growth Package – the biggest of its kind in 20 years – will help do just this by supporting ambitious local businesses to grow, creating more than 2,000 high-skilled, high-paid and secure jobs in this first phase, right across our six boroughs, helping mitigate against the potentially disastrous impact of a No Deal Brexit and attracting new businesses to our area.”

Councillor Pat Hackett, Portfolio Holder for Inclusive Economy and the Third Sector, said:

“We need to create an environment that allows businesses to thrive to ensure that the residents of the Liverpool City Region can benefit from that growth through access to good-quality, well-paid jobs and opportunities.  That is why we have listened closely to what business need and we are proposing this innovative £75 million package of support.”

Asif Hamid, MBE, Chair of the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership, said:

“As the LEP, we have been working closely with our partners in the Combined Authority and the business community over the last 12 months to develop this extensive package of measures to enable our city region’s businesses to realise their potential.

“This £75m support for business is hugely welcome and timely as we build on the excellent growth of the last few years to take our City Region to the next level.  And we will continue to work in partnership with the Combined Authority and business to help implement these measures through our new Growth Platform – Liverpool City Region Growth Company.”

Madina Barker, Director, CNC Robotics, said:

“Future success across all industries within the region will be defined by the ability of firms to adapt their infrastructure and exploit related technologies. The greatest threat to employment is not automation and technology but an inability to have skilled staff in order to remain competitive.

“We are excited about the package of support on offer which will be welcomed by the city region’s businesses and will enable a positive drive in productivity and jobs across the region. Up-skilling the region’s workforce has never been more important to give businesses a competitive edge as we contend in an ever-more global market.”

Companies interested in accessing this support should visit https://localgrowthhub.com/funding/ where they can register their interest (web page live from 27/09/19).