East of England All-Party Parliamentary Group

The East of England APPG brings together East of England’s MPs and Peers with elected local council leaders, directly elected mayors and police, crime and fire commissioners – as well as senior representatives from the private and third sectors – to give a strong political voice for policies which support the East of England’s economy and environment and promote its potential as a place to work, study, live, visit and invest.

The East of England APPG held its Inaugural meeting of the new Parliament on Wednesday 11th September. MPs, Jess Asato and Andrew Pakes were elected Co-chairs and MPs Marie Goldman and Blake Stephenson were elected Vice-chairs. Thirty five Parliamentarians registered their formal support for the re-establishment of the Group and are listed in the minutes here. The Group has now been formally registered and a copy of this document is here

SUBMISSION TO THE 2025 SPENDING REVIEW BY THE EAST OF ENGLAND APPG PARLIAMENTARY OFFICERS AND PARTNERS

The 2025 Spending Review for the period 2026 to 2029 should begin by recognising the huge potential of the East of England to help deliver the Government’s missions of sustained economic growth, rising living standards, 95% clean energy and 1.5million new homes.

The Opportunity East report highlighted the growth sectors within the East of England already making it the innovation region with an economy of the future including life sciences, agri-tech and clean energy. The two fastest growing cities in the UK are Cambridge and Peterborough and in the decade to 2021 the population grew faster than any other region.

The East of England powers, feeds, and supplies the UK. Offshore wind farms power the equivalent of 32% of all UK homes; it supplies 15% of England’s total farmland, and 50% of the UK’s containerised goods move through the region.

All this has been achieved despite longstanding public underinvestment. In total, the East of England receives £8bn less per year than the national per capita average. Infrastructure has experienced under-investment for decades and, as a result, there is a risk of not maximising the region’s growth potential. Barriers to growth exist in skills and education, housing, health, digital connectivity and transport.

Key infrastructure projects that will benefit the entire of the UK – not just the East of England – include Ely and Haughley junction; East West Rail, including its extension to Ipswich and Norwich; and key road upgrades supporting new homes and economic growth as well as serving the region’s international gateways. The East of England is also at severe risk of flooding and from drought. Meanwhile basic utilities, including power connections, are not keeping up with the needs of the region.

Already a net contributor to the Exchequer, by 2035 the East of England could be a £220bn economy attracting huge sums of private inward investment. Please use the Spending Review to invest wisely: to remove barriers to growth and to empower combined and local authorities to help realise this region’s massive economic potential.

To read the supplementary evidence provided please click here

 

If you are interested in supporting the East of England APPG then please get in contact via [email protected]