News: Regional economic delivery group for Yorkshire and the Humber agrees actions to address economic downturn

The Yorkshire and Humber Economic Delivery Group, established by Regional Minister Rosie Winterton, has agreed a series of priority areas to ensure that the region emerges from the economic downturn stronger than before. Priorites include:

- Improve understanding of what is happening across the different industry sectors and parts of the region
- Ensure the initiatives in place to support businesses and individuals affected by the downturn are effective
- Support people who may be facing redundancy with advice and training linked to new job opportunities

Rosie Winterton said: "This was a very productive first meeting of the Regional Economic Delivery Group. We discussed what action is being taken to tackle the worst effects in the short term and looked at what we could do to maximise opportunities for the region to support eventual upturn in the economy. "In these challenging times it is important that all parts of Government work together with regional and local partners from the public and private sectors to support the economy. "We were very clear that our role is to prioritise activities where they can deliver the most impact as well as understanding and filling any gaps in existing support. We discussed issues around access to finance, response to redundancies, procurement and development and regeneration." Rotherham is represented on the board by council leader, Roger Stone, in his capacity as chair of the Regional Improvement Board.

Government Office Y&H website

Rotherham