Brexit and local government

This briefing paper highlights some areas in which leaving the European Union may impact on local government. Some uncertainty has been expressed about the future of the ‘devolution deals’ agreed with various local areas in the aftermath of the vote to leave the European Union. There are no clear indications as yet that the Government intends to change policy direction as regards devolution to local areas. The UK was due to receive some £5.3 billion in European Union structural funds in the 2014-2020 programming period. A regional and local breakdown of these funds is available from the Government. It is not yet clear for how long instalments of these funds will be paid. This is likely to depend on the eventual date on which the UK leaves the European Union.