The business secretary Vince Cable has praised regional newspapers for boosting local business development through the Regional Growth Fund (RGF).
Speaking at a Newspaper Conference lunch, the Liberal Democrat politician said that the scheme was allowing small businesses to access funds that would otherwise be unavailable.
The RGF, a £1.4bn project which operates across the UK, has awarded at least four regional newspapers grants that are being redistributed into the local business community.
At the lunch, chaired by Northcliffe Media’s Nick Lester, Cable was particularly keen to congratulate the Western Morning News, for its role in the local business community – the Newspaper Society reports.
Related
One of the projects in the RGF that we are most proud of and is really making waves is the Plymouth project for SMEs [Small and Medium Enterprises] which I think the Western Morning News is heavily involved in,’he said.
When I went down to Plymouth three weeks back I was absolutely overwhelmed by the incredible enthusiasm from the local business community, dozens of small companies have been identified to be given practical help in a way that a big organisation… would never have been able to access.
Other papers involved in the scheme are the Newcastle’s The Journal, the Liverpool Echo and the Birmingham Post.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
