COUNCIL leaders want to form a rival to the Northern Powerhouse and Midlands Engine to ensure the region is not left behind.

The Greater Brighton Economic Board has called on the Government to support the creation of the Southern Accelerator in the hope of receiving substantial Government investment in infrastructure, jobs, housing, new technology and growth.

The move comes as political leaders warned now was the time to make the case strongly to Government for greater regional funding and powers.

It is hoped the Southern Accelerator could attract similar levels of Government support as its northern equivalents – Chancellor Philip Hammond recently unveiled almost £400 million for the Midlands Engine.

The Southern Accelerator would be a concept and brand rather than a new body and would initially focus on Greater Brighton and the Gatwick corridor but with the potential to be expanded to include Sussex and the South East.

The call comes as part of Greater Brighton’s response to the Government’s industrial strategy green paper which emphasises that the success of the South East economy continues to be recognised.

The response states that with “relatively modest interventions” in road, rail and digital infrastructure and tools to “unlock” housing and employment floorspace, Greater Brighton can deliver improved productivity and growth.

In a bid to add greater economic heft to the Greater Brighton Economic Board, Crawley Borough Council and Gatwick Airport have been invited to join.

The total costs to the taxpayer will also rise in 2017/18 to a quarter of a million pounds – almost £100,000 more than the predicted costs for 2016/17.

Councillor Geoffrey Theobald, Brighton and Hove Conservative group leader, urged the response to the Government to be even stronger on transport infrastructure, highlighting a need to expand the “single carriageway” of the Brighton Main Line which meant repairs and faults caused huge disruption.

Brighton and Hove City Council leader Warren Morgan said the Southern Accelerator brand had not been thought up by “hugely expensive” consultants but was his idea.

He said it was time for the region to raise its game to show it was capable of competing on an “international and national stage”.

He said: “It is important as the national picture around devolution develops that we have some sort of identity to compete with London, the Northern Powerhouse and the Midland Engine.

“It’s not so much that our area needs regeneration but to go further and faster to build on the successes of our universities and industries.”

Lewes District Council leader Andy Smith said infrastructure was key, something the Northern Powerhouse and Midland Engine had it in abundance.

He added: “In our area we are constrained. We need to unleash constraints not just on the Brighton line and roads but everything ancillary to the massive housebuilding we need to do. We need to crystallise where investment should fall.”