As the deabte rages as to whether they will make any difference, the chancellor has revealed the locations of the first of 21 new enterprise zones to be set up.
Delivering his 2011 Budget announcement Osborne said zones will be set up in Birmingham and Solihull, Bristol, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, Leeds, Liverpool, Greater Manchester, Sheffield, the Tees Valley, Tyneside and the Black Country. Another zone will be set up in London. The exact area will be chosen by the city’s mayor Boris Johnson. Further details on the others will be revealed by the prime minister on Thursday.
Businesses based within the zones will receive up to 100% discounts on business rates, new superfast broadband and the potential to use enhanced capital allowances in locations where there is a strong focus on manufacturing.
The scheme ehoes a similar one introduced in the 1980s by former prime minister Margaret Thatcher. Although some zones were criticised for the number of jobs and businesses they created, the Docklands area of East London, now an international powerhouse and once a wasteland, is seen as a success story.
Manos Schizas, SME policy adviser at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, said: "The fact that 10 out of the 21 zones are yet to be determined and will be put up for tender suggests the government isn’t entirely sure what it would like to do with them.
"Such long-term decisions, however, should not be taken lightly, so the case for an additional 10 zones must be made first. ACCA is confident that it can be made, but notes that if enterprise zones are to be a success then they have to demonstrate that they are good value for the substantial concessions given."
- This article first appeared on our SME-focused sister site, Businesszone.co.uk
