At least £1.1bn a year should be handed to devolved areas of England and communities to help them tackle skills shortages and drive economic growth, a new report from think-tank EDSK has urged.

EDSK said staff shortages across the economy will not be addressed until the Government ends its reliance on top-down national initiatives.

Chairman of the Local Government Association's people and places board, Kevin Bentley, said: ‘Given the right powers and resources, local government can help communities get through this cost of living crisis by creating new jobs, offering new training and spreading opportunities to more people, in our shared endeavour to level up the country.'