THE South West Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) says it is expecting to lose about £23 million from its budget.

Chancellor George Osborne has announced that a total of £270m would have to go from regional development agencies across the UK.

SWRDA has also been asked to make 10 per cent efficiency savings on top of the cuts.

SWRDA chief executive Jane Henderson said: “We don't have £20m sitting in the bank waiting for things to do, so it will mean some tough decisions.

“We’ll be discussing with the Government over the next days or weeks exactly how that cut will be split between regions.

“It comes on top of a cut of £56m which we've already had to apply over the last two years.”

Ms Henderson did not rule out the possibility of projects having money withdrawn from them.

She said: “I’m very conscious of the effect that it could have on our partners and businesses and communities.

“We have a lot of commitments already, but what we need to do is keep going with those projects which are most important to the future of our economy.”