Ensuring Swindon continues to have a competitive edge in relation to other towns and cities in the region is an important part of the Council’s work.

Most of this takes place behind the scenes and involves working with partners and central government, either through lobbying, putting in funding bids or submitting expressions of interest.

In recent years, we have been extremely successful in securing significant sums of money from the Government and through Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership which has helped us deliver extra capacity at key roads and junctions. Without this external funding these improvements would not be possible.

For example, through the Government’s Local Growth Fund the Council was awarded £93m, which includes £63m from the Department for Transport, to unlock growth on the east side of Swindon.

When you add on projects such as the upgrades to Junction 15 of the M4, the creation of a new access road into Wichelstowe underneath the motorway, and the improvements to the Moonrakers and Mead Way junctions that equates to around £150m in funding the Council has managed to secure for the benefit of local residents.

The money the Council has secured to carry out the Fleming Way improvements and the various Towns Fund regeneration projects pushes that figure past the £200m mark.

Our proactive approach is attracting inward investment and new companies into the Borough, and is bringing forward more jobs and housing However, these schemes are not just for the here and now; they will enable Swindon to prosper in the future.

This is why, as a council, we will always look for any available opportunities, which will benefit the town and continue to allow our economy to grow.

The latest of these opportunities has seen us submit an expression of interest to create two new Investment Zones in the Borough.

Investment Zones are being proposed by the Government to act as designated sites where businesses will benefit from time-limited tax incentives and streamlined planning rules to deliver investment, create jobs and build the homes that communities need.

We have identified Central Swindon and the A419 Corridor as two primary growth clusters, which would be ideal locations to benefit from such zones.

These areas are already either delivering growth or have plans in place to make a significant contribution to Swindon’s future success and Investment Zone status would really accelerate that process.

We are still waiting to find out what direction Investment Zones will take under the new Prime Minister and his Cabinet, but the Government will be in no doubt that Swindon’s reputation as an ambitious, forward-thinking council, remains undimmed.