2. There will be no extra money from the Government
or the European Union.

Although the North East needs a better funding deal, an Assembly will not be able to provide it. As Nick Raynsford stated, and Lord Rooker confirmed, there will be no more money from central Government.

Therefore the Assembly will have £350m to spend, which is £150m less than the budget of Sunderland Council, and works out at only 38p per day per person in the region. Scotland and Wales will continue to receive massive amounts of extra funding under the Barnett Formula, calculated in 1978.

The Government refuses to reform this, and Lord Barnett who had planned that the formula would only last for one year now describes it as 'unfair,' with there now being more poverty in parts of the North East and North West than in Scotland. If the North East got the same funding as Scotland we would get £1.3 billion every year which, would be of real benefit to the area. After 2006 the money the North East receives from the European Union in the form of Structural Funds will dry up.

The North East will be classed as a wealthy region in comparison to regions of the ten accession countries joining the EU on May 1st 2004. This was confirmed by President of the Parliament, Pat Cox.