Tech hubs near England’s universities to benefit from almost £1bn in extra funding

Chancellor will pledge in budget to create 12 investment zones in eight areas ‘to drive business investment’

Tech hubs clustered around universities in England will benefit from almost £1bn in extra funding as part of a range of measures in the budget on Wednesday to boost business investment in the regions.

The chancellor will make the pledge to create 12 investment zones in eight areas “to drive business investment and level up” the country, each backed with £80m of government funding.