Seven North West businesses receive £23 million from Regional Growth Fund

A total of £23 million has been given to seven projects in the North West in Round 5 of the Regional Growth Fund (RGF). This is expected to raise £140 million of private investment and create and safeguard thousands of jobs.

The Government’s Regional Growth Fund will invest £300 million in 50 projects across the country to create thousands of jobs and fuel business expansion, the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, announced today as he visited businesses in the North West.

When added to the success of the first four rounds, this represents a total of £420 million of RGF funding for 79 North West projects. This has raised £2.3 billion of private sector investment and will create tens of thousands of jobs in the long-term.

The seven businesses which have been selected in the North West are Absynth Biologics Ltd in Alderley Park, Cheshire; Glen Dimplex Home Appliances Ltd in Prescot, Merseyside; GT Energy UK Limited in Manchester; Nice-Pak International Ltd in Wigan; North West Logistics Limited in Altham, Lancashire; Redx Pharma Ltd in Liverpool; and Unilever UK Central Resources Ltd in Port Sunlight, Wirral.

The Deputy Prime Minister said:“The North West has seen major benefits from the Regional Growth fund already, and the £23 million investment I am announcing today is the latest important part in making sure the recovery is sustainable and balanced across the country.

“We’re seeing very encouraging signs that the British economy is on the road to recovery. Home-grown and British-based businesses are leading that charge for a stronger economy.

“The Regional Growth Fund gives businesses a helping hand from Government to fuel business expansion and create sustainable employment.

“I pay tribute to the ambitious companies who are using the Regional Growth Fund to create jobs locally, helping to build a stronger economy and doing it fairly.”

The Deputy Prime Minister will be in Merseyside where he will visit two companies who have been awarded funding from the RGF: At cooker manufacturer Glen Dimplex he will talk to staff about how the company will use their £3 million Round 5 RGF investment to expand their business, creating hundreds of jobs and boost the local economy.

He will also visit electrical cable manufacturer Tratos to talk to staff about how their RGF Round 4 investment of nearly £3 million is being used to expand the business and create and safeguard about 100 jobs for local people.

A total of 50 companies and programmes will receive cash in the latest round of the Regional Growth Fund (RGF), a Government project to create sustainable employment and rebalance the economy.