Under recently announced Regional Policy changes, which will be fully implemented by August 1982, the Region will continue to benefit from Regional Assistance. Some areas are to be downgraded to a lower or non-assisted area level, but most of these are rural areas in Northumberland and SW Durham and 97% of the insured working population will remain in an assisted area of one type or another. Special Development Areas of maximum assistance will still cover approximately 59% of the insured working population of the North Eastern Region. These changes, and alterations to financial assistance levels and criteria, are aimed at concentrating aid incentives and effort in the Special Development Areas.
In addition to the Regional incentives a number of special schemes for particular industries have been introduced nationally to encourage companies to modernise, rationalise and increase their productivity. Further measures to combat unemployment within the North Eastern Region include the building of factories in advance of known tenants to attract new industry to the assisted areas. Since the beginning of 1966 the North Eastern Region's share has been 665 factories with a total of over 4 million sq ft.
One basic change introduced by the 1972 Act was the decentralisation of some decision making on Selective Financial Assistance to the Regional Offices of the Department of Industry, where Industrial Development Boards drawn from both sides of industry were set up to advise on projects. (In the North Eastern Region of the Board Chairman is Dr A W C Taylor FRSA, Chairman Tees and Hartlepool Port Authority). The Regional Office was also strengthened in 1972 with the introduction of an Under Secretary as Regional Director (currently Mr WR Atkinson) and the creation of a new post of Regional Industrial Director (re-named Regional Industrial Advisor in 1981) filled by a senior man drawn from industry (currently Mr F A Green).
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