Political and business leaders in Bassetlaw react to Levelling Up white paper to close the gap between rich and poor parts of the country

Levelling Up secretary Micheal Gove unveiled the 4oo-page document today which sets out the government’s 12 “levelling up missions” to close the gap between rich and poor parts of the country.

The strategy will take until 2030 and aims to improve services such as education, broadband and transport.

At the heart of it is a plan to create more regional mayors, with every part of England having access to "London-style" powers, with the expectation that they would be able to target spending more effectively.

Nottinghamshire and Nottingham have been named as one of the first nine areas in England invited to seek a devolution deal.

Leaders of all the local councils in Notts met in October and agreed on a joint vision for devolution.

The leaders are set to meet and discuss the options further and agree on the best way forward, before presenting the plans to the government.

Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council and chairman of the City of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire economic prosperity committee, Ben Bradley MP said: “We’re pleased that the Levelling Up White Paper has been published. It is an important document, and we need clear and decisive action to help level up our city and county.

“Before the publication, since setting out our joint vision for devolution, we have been working hard to pull plans together to tackle the challenges we all face through collaboration and strong leadership across all nine local councils in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. We intend to publish these plans over the coming weeks and months.

“We believe we have a strong case, and we are happy to take up the government’s offer with further discussions about how we can negotiate a good devolution package, to bring much needed powers and resources to our local communities.

“Over the next few days, we will be carefully considering all the details as set out in the white paper and then holding discussions with the government, who clearly recognise the potential of our joined-up approach.”

Leader of Bassetlaw District Council, councillor Simon Greaves, was concerned that “no new money” has been announced.

He said: “The Levelling Up white paper has been announced but we are yet to see any real detail from its 400 pages.

“I am concerned to learn that no new money has been announced with the white paper.

“Nottingham and Notts is identified as an area which will be invited to progress a "county deal".

" I think it's important that we all understand and work through what this entails and especially what it will mean for Bassetlaw residents, in terms of opportunity, jobs, business, education, and transport.

“It's very important that there is a clear consensus amongst all authorities about how best to proceed at this point.

"I want to see proposals that will genuinely improve wages, living standards and quality of life in these difficult times rather than focus on more red tape and how councils are structured.

“We need to ensure that the focus of any “county deal” is to deliver benefits for all districts and boroughs across Notts.”

East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire) chief executive Scott Knowles said: “After lots of rhetoric, it’s an important moment to finally see what levelling up will mean in practice under this government.

“Any vehicle that results in more powers being given to local areas is, in principle, a positive step as it should equip cities, counties and regions with the tools to shape their places as they see fit and use their local knowledge to target the issues that matter to them.

“It’s promising to see Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Notts all named in the first cohort to be invited to agree new county deals. It’s crucial these mechanisms lead to enhanced public investment, given the East Midlands has historically received the least funding per head of any UK region*.

“Businesses in our three counties are increasingly beginning to understand they are being left behind by those in other regions that have been given devolved powers."