£1.3bn worth of construction investment confirmed

The government has confirmed details of a £1.3bn investment in the construction industry, including £900m for 300 “shovel-ready” projects in England.

The money for the 300 projects will come from the Getting
Building Fund, which was announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in June, to
invest in shovel-ready housing and infrastructure projects, creating jobs and
supporting economic recovery across the country.

The investment is expected to deliver up to 45,000 homes and
create up to 85,000, according to the government.

Successful projects being funded include:

• £23m for phase 1 of the development of commercial space at Mayfield Park in Greater Manchester
• £14.9m to accelerate the National Brownfield Land Institute, a project aiming to create a leader in sustainable construction
• £12m to support a new high-speed railway station in Thanet, Kent

The government has also confirmed a £360m investment in Mayoral Combined Authority areas through its £400m Brownfield Fund, which it claimed would deliver a further 26,000 new homes while “protecting greenfield sites”.

A further £8m of funding has also been announced to help speed up the delivery of these new homes on brownfield sites and the government is inviting bids from the Mayoral Combined Authorities for the remaining £40m of the fund.

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said: “As we get Britain
building we are also laying the foundations for a green economic recovery by
investing in vital infrastructure for local communities, creating jobs and
building environmentally-friendly homes with a huge £1.3bn investment announced
today.

“This government is determined to level up all parts of the
country and this funding will not only give a much-needed boost to our economic
recovery, it will help build the good quality, affordable homes the country
needs.”