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ACT parent company Bira welcomes Bank of England's latest interest rate cut

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has welcomed the Bank of England's decision to reduce interest rates from 4.5% to 4.25%, calling it a "much-needed boost" for the retail sector, including for cycling... Read more…

ACT parent company Bira responds to Beales' "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" as iconic store makes final protest

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has responded to the news that the 144-year-old Beales department store is staging a "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" in its final weeks of trading, with giant yellow... Read more…

Employment Rights Bill - ACT and Bira answer your questions

28 Apr 2025

The Labour Government’s new Employment Rights Bill is set to be in force this year and the new regulations will impact high street retailers up and down the country.
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ACT parent company Bira welcomes Chancellor's action on unfair trade practices

25 Apr 2025

ACT parent company Bira welcomes the Chancellor's announcement of plans to create a level playing field for British businesses against unfair international trade practices.
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ACT parent company Bira responds to Prime Minister's 'Bobbies on the Beat' plan

11 Apr 2025

Bira has cautiously welcomed the Prime Minister's announcement this week on plans to put 'thousands of Bobbies back on the Beat' with a new neighbourhood policing guarantee.
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ACT parent company Bira warns of 'Atrocious April' as shop price inflation rises

1 Apr 2025

Bira has voiced serious concerns over the latest figures from the BRC-NIQ Shop Price Index for March 2025.
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ACT parent company Bira says Spring Statement fails to address high street crisis

26 Mar 2025

ACT parent company Bira has said the Chancellor's Spring Statement delivered today has failed to address the "perfect storm" of cost pressures facing independent retailers across the UK,... Read more…

ACT parent company Bira outlines key priorities ahead of Spring Budget

25 Mar 2025

ACT parent company Bira has outlined its key priorities ahead of the Chancellor's Spring Budget statement.
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Bristol-based cycling charity Life Cycle now offering Cytech training courses

20 Mar 2025

Cytech, the internationally recognised training and accreditation scheme for bicycle mechanics, have partnered with Bristol-based charity Life Cycle to offer a range of bicycle mechanic... Read more…

High street 'death knell' – indie retailers, including cycle shops, shutting doors ahead of April tax rises

12 Mar 2025

Towns and cities across Britain are already seeing a wave of closures as independent businesses shut their doors ahead of April’s triple tax burden, including those in the cycling retail... Read more…

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Levelling Up plan to spread opportunity and prosperity throughout the country

Posted on in Business News, Cycles News, Political News

The Houses of Parliament, budget 2020Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has published its Levelling Up White Paper, setting out the government's plans to spread opportunity and prosperity throughout the country.

The White Paper details twelve ‘key missions' to be achieved by 2030. These include:

  • Every part of England that wants one will have a devolution deal.
  • Reducing serious violence and neighbourhood crime particularly within the worst-affected areas.
  • Raising pride in place, including people's satisfaction with their town centre and community engagement.
  • Improving pay, employment and productivity across the UK.
  • Raising skills in the labour market, including 80,000 more people completing entry-level courses, guided by new Local Skills Improvement Plans.
  • Rolling out nationwide gigabit-capable broadband and 4G coverage, with 5G coverage for the majority of the population.
  • Improving wellbeing across the country and reducing gaps within regions.

The missions will be set in law by a forthcoming Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which will also require the government to publish annual progress reports to be scrutinised in part by a new Levelling Up Advisory Council. The Bill is expected to be announced at the next Queen's Speech in May.

The White Paper itself includes underlying policy plans to:

  • Implement the £96bn Integrated Rail Plan, improving the rail network in the North and Midlands, and invest £24bn in our busiest roads and motorways, £5.7bn in City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements and £5bn for buses, cycling and walking networks.
  • Announce 68 more local authorities to be supported by the High Streets Task Force to invest in their town centres.
  • Require landlords of empty shops to fill them if they have been left vacant for too long.
  • Introduce an In-Work Progression Offer to help people on low incomes address barriers to better employment opportunities, building on the National Disability Strategy.
  • Publish a second report on rural proofing in the Spring to ensure rural circumstances are considered during policy development.
  • £50m annually through the Safer Streets Fund to tackle anti-social behaviour.
 

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