Local matters

Slowly but surely, however, the new machinery of enterprise zones and local enterprise partnerships is being oiled with Government cash which, while not liberally applied, is welcome all the same. The £59m announced yesterday by Communities Secretary Eric Pickles will be made available for enterprise zones to apply for investment to complete key infrastructure projects which in turn should attract new business ventures. And, while the amount of money involved can hardly be described as generous, it is at least a step towards prising cash away from Whitehall and allowing local areas to make spending decisions for themselves.

If infrastructure investment is going to achieve its potential, however, the Government has to do more than hand out money. The largest enterprise zones of all, for example, on the banks of the Humber, would benefit from a coherent energy policy that would encourage firms with the knowledge that their investment plans would be supported nationally as well as locally.Until then, the money announced yesterday will have to suffice. But there remains much more that the Government could do to back up the grand rhetoric of Mr Pickles.