Estuary Envoy, Kate Willard OBE, said:
“We welcome the intentions of the Government’s Levelling Up White Paper and its acknowledgement of our role in this vital work. We stand ready to work in partnership with Government departments to level up this place.
“The Thames Estuary Growth Board has put Levelling Up at the heart of its ambitions for this region. We understand that growth in the Estuary will deliver the investment, infrastructure, and quality of life that local communities deserve, and has the potential to add £190bn GVA and create 1.3m jobs by 2035.
“To that end, we are working hard to drive positive change across the Estuary by backing initiatives like the successful Thames Freeport bid; significant infrastructure projects including the Lower Thames Crossing and London Resort; catalysing an Estuary-wide hydrogen ecosystem, unlocking potential housing growth through infrastructure, and attracting international investment to deliver and capitalise upon all the logistical and natural advantages of this beautiful place.
“The Growth Board has a strong model for investment that does not rely solely on public money but seeks to leverage private sector investment by promoting an array of exciting opportunities here. This will be key to achieving the Government’s Levelling Up goals in the longer term.
“We are also supporting our local authorities with their own levelling-up policy development and funding bid submissions with evidence-based work such as the Thames Estuary Levelling Up Data Atlas, a report commissioned by the Growth Board in May 2021 which maps the social inequalities and imbalances across the region.”