Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, has welcomed today’s Budget from the Chancellor, John Healey.
His speech, which championed devolution and regional growth, included £10 million for the West to invest in public realm improvements in Bristol Temple Quarter, unlocking private investment in regeneration – making the area feel inviting for all.
Alongside more support for families and businesses, today’s Budget documents highlight a raft of investment in the country’s fastest-growing regional economy – with confirmation of:
- £14.5 million to help the mayoral authority to drive good growth in every postcode, to invest in regional priorities such as infrastructure, regeneration, skills, housing, and innovation
- Access to a new £1.5 billion strategic borrowing programme being designed with and for mayors, from 2028
- Backing for Isambard-AI, with £500 million from the Sovereign AI Unit to give start-ups 1 million hours of access to the country’s biggest supercomputer
- £752 million of record transport funding for the West of England, with mass transit options being developed for the region
- A roadmap for fiscal devolution, including a share of income tax being retained by mayors from 2028
- Further £2.5 billion investment with Rolls-Royce to develop next-generation engine technology – supporting 3,300 jobs, including here in the West of England, by the end of 2029 with tens of thousands more in thedecades ahead
- A share of £150 million of capacity funding for mayoral authorities, to deliver devolution’s growing powers and responsibilities
- £65 million for the West’s Future Places Fund, which aims to help build up to 6,000 new homes and add £1 billion to the economy
- A share of an additional £432 million investment to end rough sleeping, adding to the £12 million already announced for the West
- Praise for the region’s first Mayoral Development Zone, at Brabazon and the West Innovation Arc, where new homes and a new train station are already being delivered
- A direct share of business rates growth for the Mayor of the West of England, and a business rates retention zone in North Somerset
Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said:
“People across our region will welcome new measures to give more families and businesses more of the breathing space that they need, in an uncertain world. Today’s bonanza Budget builds on things like the upcoming £2 bus fare cap, which the Prime Ministerannounced in Bath this summer, that can save people hundreds of pounds.
“These immediate interventions should reduce pressure on household budgets, including by freezing fuel duty, £100 towards energy bills, scrapping standing charges on gas bills, extending the VAT cut on electricity bills, and increasing small business ratesrelief — while enabling longer-term investment to lay the foundations for good growth in every postcode.
“Unprecedented funding plans confirmed by the Chancellor will add to the around £1 billion that the West of England has already secured over the last eighteen months or so, including record transport funding for things we all want to see like better buses,more trains, and mass transit.
“From the overnight visitor levy to plans for more of the taxes already raised here to be reinvested here, our region getting more control helps give real hope for a future that is already looking brighter.”
The West of England’s economy grew four times faster than the national average during the most recent period for which comparable data is available (2019-23). In 2023, the region grew by almost 3% – outperforming every other combined authority area and London.The West of England Growth Strategy published in September 2025 set out an ambition to further grow the economy by 28% over the coming decade. In the last decade measured, businesses in the cities of Bath and Bristol and nearby towns and villages created some100,000 new jobs – with the fastest jobs growth of any region in the country in key sectors, including the everyday economy (+17%), digital and tech (+52%), creative industries (+82%), and clean energy (+140%).
Worth more than £54 billion already, the West is the most productive region outside of the capital and launched a £17billion Investment Prospectus earlier this year at the UK’s Real Estate, Investment & Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) – including plans for the Future Places Fund and:
- Transport infrastructure including mass transit, as part of theregion’s Transport Vision, with plans backed by record funding from government and delivery supported by the Prime Minister during his visit to Bath in the summer and in recent weeks at Number 10 North
- BristolTemple Quarter and Brabazon& the West Innovation Arc, multi-billion-pound developments which, alongside the Bath Riverside Innovation District, offer the chance for tens of thousands of new homes and tens of thousands of new jobs
