• The UK government to set 12 new missions to drive real change to people’s lives by spreading opportunity and reversing geographical inequalities
• Inspired by the success of the vaccine rollout, Secretary of State Michael Gove to invite the First Ministers of the devolved governments to work together to level up the whole United Kingdom
• Leaders across the UK will be asked to find new ways to collaborate and learn from each other’s successes as we face common challenges
• New Silicon Valley-style ‘Innovation Accelerator’ for Glasgow to create quality new jobs and boost regional economy

The UK government’s Levelling Up white paper will today set out an ambitious blueprint to improve lives and expand opportunities across the whole United Kingdom.

Last year the UK Government announced £200 million investment for projects in Scotland supported by its Levelling Up Fund, Community Renewal Fund and Community Ownership Fund.

Following publication of the white paper, Secretary of State for Levelling Up Michael Gove will invite to the First Ministers of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland to join a new collective effort to level up the whole of the United Kingdom.

In addition, the Glasgow city region will become one of three new ‘Innovation Accelerators’. These new centres for innovation, research, and development will drive-up prosperity and opportunity for local people – each backed by a share of £100 million of UK government funding.

This Innovation Accelerator, alongside others in Greater Manchester and the West Midlands, are inspired by the Stanford-Silicon Valley and MIT-Greater Boston models of combining excellent research with cutting-edge industry in a city-region.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:

From day one, the defining mission of this government has been to level up this country, to break the link between geography and destiny so that no matter where you live you have access to the same opportunities.

The challenges we face have been embedded over generations and cannot be dug out overnight, but this White Paper is the next crucial step.

It is a vision for the future that will see public spending on R&D increased in every part of the country; transport connectivity improving; faster broadband in every community; life expectancies rising; violent crime falling; schools improving; and private sector investment being unleashed.

It is the most comprehensive, ambitious plan of its kind that this country has ever seen and it will ensure that the government continues to rise to the challenge and deliver for the people of the UK.

Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Rt Hon Michael Gove MP said:

The United Kingdom is an unparalleled success story with one of the world’s biggest and most dynamic economies.

But not everyone shares equally in the UK’s success. Great cities like Glasgow, Belfast, Swansea and Manchester, and proud towns from Aberystwyth to Armagh, to Bangor and Yeovil, have huge potential but contain inequalities which hold too many back.

Our ambitious plan to unite and level up the whole UK seeks to end that historic injustice and call time on the postcode lottery.

We will only succeed if all layers of government – UK, devolved, and local – work together.

We have seen through the success of the vaccine roll-out what we can achieve when we pull together. United, there is no challenge we cannot meet.

Among the White Paper’s 12 central missions are plans to: close the gap between the UK’s highest and lowest performing cities; improve educational attainment among children leaving primary school; narrow the gap in healthy life expectancy between the best and worst performing areas of the UK; and close gaps in transport and connectivity.

These missions will drive real change by spreading opportunity and prosperity and reverse the postcode lottery of life chances in the UK.

Where policies are reserved, the UK government will lead on delivery UK-wide. Where missions fall in devolved policy areas, the UK government will seek to work collaboratively with the devolved governments to deliver for the people we jointly serve.

The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Michael Gove, will write to the leaders of the devolved administrations to invite them to work together to deliver for people across the UK.

Proposals will include using the new structures created in the landmark Intergovernmental Relations Review to drive collaboration to overcome geographical disparities and the creation of a new body to share evidence and analyse success in devolved policy areas across the UK.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said:

I welcome the publication of the Levelling Up White Paper and urge the Scottish Government and local partners to work closely with us improving lives across Scotland.

Initiatives such as the Glasgow City-Region becoming an Innovation Accelerator, unlocking access to a share of £100 million of new funding, will help Scotland continue its vital role in keeping the UK at the forefront of global science and research.

Thanks to locally led partnerships working closely with the UK Government, the region will become a major innovation cluster delivering high end jobs. This, along with the UK Government’s commitment to invest £20 billion research and development budget outside the Greater South East of England, is great news for Scotland and the wider UK as we deliver on our levelling up commitments.

Amongst the UK-wide policies the UK Government will drive are:

• A 40% increase in domestic public investment in R&D outside the Greater South East of England by 2030. The Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) have committed to invest at least 55% of their domestic R&D funding outside the Greater South East by 2024/5.
• Decentralisation of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to local areas in Scotland and Wales.
• Nationwide gigabit-capable broadband and 4G coverage across the UK and 5G coverage for most of the population.

Plans for Northstowe, the largest new town since Milton Keynes have taken a huge step forward, with Homes England securing £123.9 million of funding to deliver new infrastructure and plans for the penultimate phase of Northstowe given the green light by South Cambridgeshire District Council.

The planning approval covers phase 3A and includes 4,000 new homes, a mixed-use centre, two primary schools, and a range of open spaces for play and recreation, across 210 hectares (519 acres). A section 106 agreement will now be agreed to deliver community benefits.

In addition to securing the outline planning for 4,000 new homes, Homes England has secured £123.9 million of funding which will enable the agency to continue acting as master developer. This funding will give Homes England the resources it needs to build more of Northstowe’s essential infrastructure, including roads, public transport routes, cycleways, green space and schools. This infrastructure is a vital pre-requisite to Homes England opening up land for 5,100 homes, comprising 3,500 homes of phase 2 of the Northstowe masterplan and the first 1,600 homes of phase 3a.

The Homes England flagship settlement is set to create 10,000 new homes in total, making it one of the largest new settlements in the country. The remaining phase – 3B – which provides a further 1,000 homes, primary school and mixed-use commercial zone, as well as a communal area, across 47 hectares (116 acres) will be considered at a later date. When complete, around 25,000 people will live at Northstowe.

Housing Minister Rt Hon Christopher Pincher MP said:

It is crucial to our levelling up mission that we build the high-quality homes this country needs, where we need them. So I am very pleased that thousands of families will have the opportunity to rent or buy a new home in Cambridgeshire and enjoy the cycleways, green space and schools that will be provided for them in Northstowe.

Ken Glendinning, Regional Development Director South (interim) commented:

Homes England is committed to using its expertise as a master developer to create a well-designed, sustainable new town that promotes a sense of community and pride in place.

Securing the go ahead for Northstowe Phase 3A from the planning committee marks a significant step forward for the town. These proposals, combined with the additional funding will establish a pipeline of new homes at Northstowe for the next 15 years, providing a variety of neighbourhoods and homes of a wide range of tenures.

Arcadis and Tibbalds Planning and Urban Design are advising Homes England on the proposals, with an emphasis throughout on health and wellbeing as well as taking on board lessons learned during recent changes to working patterns. Access to nature and open space and delivering biodiversity net gains are also important drivers for the masterplan.

Janice Hughes, Project Director for Arcadis, said:

The Planning Committee decision is a crucial step, and further endorsement of our work for Homes England to develop a landscape and community-led masterplan and address technical and environmental issues. We are really pleased that Northstowe Phase 3A can now move forward.

Katja Stille, Director of Tibbalds Planning and Urban Design, said:

Northstowe is being developed strategically as a vibrant, 21st century town offering the highest quality of community living and complementing the area’s local identity. This latest phase builds on the legacy of Phases 2, centred around a thoughtful approach to urban design, sustainability and healthy living principles.

Most importantly, Northstowe’s masterplan ensures that as well as delivering new homes, healthy living attributes will be applied to all aspects of development – from inclusive, walkable neighbourhoods with good cycling connections and easy access to facilities and green open space. It has been designed to ensure that all future residents can make positive lifestyle choices, minimising carbon impacts at the same time.

Delivery of Phase 3A is expected to start in 2023. In the meantime, work on Phase 2 of Northstowe – the town centre, on which Arcadis and Tibbalds also advised Homes England – will start to take shape.

www.northstowe.com

Pensions dashboards will revolutionise how savers access their pensions facts and figures, allowing people to see what they have in their various pensions – including their State Pension – in a single place online, at any time they choose.

Guy Opperman, Minister for Pensions, said:

Pensions dashboards are a major milestone in our ambitious reforming agenda and will bring pensions into the digital age, harnessing innovative technology to benefit savers.

Clear pensions information at the touch of a button will ensure better informed, more engaged savers and help people plan more effectively for retirement.

Chris Curry, Principle of the Pensions Dashboards Programme, said:

Dashboards will completely change the retirement savings landscape, giving people more opportunities to engage with their pensions than ever before. This improved future for savers can only be delivered by government, regulators and the pensions industry working together. This consultation is a huge step forward, providing greater clarity for industry on the steps they will need to take to deliver dashboards.

But beyond engaging with this consultation there are already many actions that pension schemes can take to progress their dashboards journey. Reviewing and preparing their data, considering the use of an ISP to connect to the dashboards ecosystem and organisational preparation, including ensuring they have the right team in place to deliver this work, can all be done now.

The consultation – which will run until 13 March 2022 – will gather feedback from industry, potential providers, consumer groups and future users on what data should be included on dashboards and how this should be displayed to people.

Savers will be able to choose how they keep track of their pension pots, with dashboards to be provided by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) and other organisations who meet the requirements to develop and host their own dashboards.

2022 marks 10 years since the introduction of Automatic Enrolment, and with a record number of British people saving for retirement, and more people managing their finances online, the need for pensions dashboards is stronger than ever.

Since Automatic Enrolment’s launch, the percentage of eligible employees participating in workplace pensions as a whole has grown from 55% to 88% – an increase of 33%.

At the end of November 2021, a record 10.6 million eligible employees were enrolled in an Automatic Enrolment pension scheme.

Additional information

• The consultation can be found here.

• Government is working with key delivery partners including the Pensions Dashboards Programme (part of the Money and Pensions Service), the Pensions Regulator and the Financial Conduct Authority to deliver dashboards.

• Further information on the timeline for the launch of dashboards can be found here.

• Further information can also be found here.

Media enquiries for this press release – 0115 965 8781

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These regional hubs, known as space clusters, will support new and growing companies, building on local expertise and catalysing investment into the space sector.

Over £600,000 will go towards supporting activities that create jobs and growth, including recruiting space cluster managers, to strengthen local space sector leadership groups and developing new business opportunities.

The funding comes as the Government is set to unveil its flagship Levelling Up White Paper later today (2 February 2022), setting out a plan to transform the UK by spreading opportunity and prosperity to all parts of it.

Space plays a pivotal role in our daily lives and is already a vital part of the UK economy, worth over £16 billion per year. However, the balance of investment and jobs is skewed towards certain regions.

The government recently launched its National Space Strategy which outlines its long-term plans to grow and level up the space sector across the UK.

Dr Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency, said:

The National Space Strategy sets out a vision for ensuring we have a thriving, resilient and well-connected space ecosystem across the whole of the UK.

We are building on our strengths in space such as satellite manufacturing, while supporting emerging markets like in-orbit servicing, to unlock the growth in the UK space sector and help level up the economy.

Will Whitehorn, President of the trade association UKspace, said:

Additional grants of this nature are hugely important in helping to communicate the potential for the growing ‘New Space’ economy. Monitoring and understanding our world from space has already become crucial to our survival. Now industrialisation in space will be driven by the need to get to Net Zero and mitigate climate change by shifting more and more carbon generating digital activities outside the atmosphere, and even producing solar power in space. The opportunities these activities will bring to the UK should not be underestimated, from space launch to digital services and even infinity and beyond!

There is also an urgent need for continuing significant investment by government and the private sector if these goals are to be achieved and the UK is able to move into the top tier of nations leading the industrial revolution in space.

Each organisation will use the funding to support locally led space sector activities in their region. This will include business case development and evidence gathering for local authorities and economic development bodies.

The new funding for regional space clusters follows £500k awarded to seven space hubs across the UK in 2020 to bring together local authorities, expertise and businesses to create a strategy for how their area can take maximum advantage of the commercial space race.

The UK already boasts a thriving space sector employing over 45,000 people in highly skilled jobs – from space scientists and researchers to engineers and satellite manufacturers.

The National Space Strategy looks to harness these strengths and support British companies to seize future opportunities, with the global space economy projected to grow from an estimated £270 billion in 2019 to £490 billion by 2030.

The UK Space Agency is working with local partners, Devolved Administrations, universities and industry to encourage more space businesses to start, grow and connect with the UK’s wider UK space ecosystem.

John Vickerman, Chief People Officer, commented:

Magnox is an exciting place to be. We need new talent, people who are tuned into our values on diversity and inclusion, who care about the environment and the generations yet to come. This challenge is suited to apprentices who want to succeed and be part of a team that continues to develop, innovate and even exceed our greatest achievements.

It’s vital that we attract apprentices that can bring fresh ideas into our rapidly expanding business and have a great time earning as they learn in our inclusive and friendly workplaces.

We currently employ over 2,300 highly skilled people who all contribute to safely decommissioning 12 first generation nuclear sites.

Apprentices are a crucial part of that mix, whether they are school leavers, returning to work after a break or looking for a different career direction.

The range of opportunities available will see apprentices based at our Magnox sites across the UK and at our Bristol business hub, where a hybrid blend of home and workplace working will be supported.

This recruitment campaign aims to attract our workforce of the future on a national and regional level through a series of virtual events where people can meet us, learn about we do, hear first-hand from our apprentices, understand the application process and get all their questions answered.

The national event is being held between 5.00 – 6.00pm on 8 February during National Apprenticeship Week. You can book your place using this link.

Regional events are being held:

1. 5.00 – 6.00 pm on 16 February for opportunities at our sites in England
2. 5.00 – 6.00 pm on 2 March for opportunities at our sites in Wales
3. 5.00 – 6.00 pm on 9 March for opportunities at our sites in Scotland

You can book your place at these events using this link.

The vacancies are currently being advertised on the Energus website and via Indeed and Job Centre Plus.

Magnox is committed to creating a workplace that is diverse and inclusive. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and communities and in particular those that are currently under represented in our workforce. This includes, but is not limited to, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates, candidates with disabilities and female candidates. Our recruitment process is fair, transparent and based on merit.