Business and civic leaders reacted with stoicism after their LEP application was rejected by the Government and are confident that a new application will be accepted in the near future.

Peter Mathews CMG, chairman of the Black Country Consortium said the rejection did not mean the end of the process.

He said: “This is a real opportunity for Black Country people to be able to take ownership of their own destiny.

"The enthusiasm across the patch to engage in the LEP application is obvious, alongside this is a deep understanding of the need for us to work with the surrounding regions especially on such things as transport links, international trade and strategic thinking.”

Council leaders in the region were also confident that an agreement could be found to get a new LEP moving.

Walsall Council leader Mike Bird said: “Our commitment remains as strong as ever. We put forward a robust and compelling case for our Local Enterprise Partnership and we are confident that we will be successful.”

Wolverhampton City Council leader Neville Patten added: “With the comments from the other leaders in the Black Country in connection with the LEP and the enthusiasm of the business people who want to be part of it, we are hoping that the Government will look favourably at our submission.

"We believe it was an excellent submission so now we await the Government’s response so we can really start the regeneration of the Black Country and working together.”

However, Dudley North MP Ian Austin was less optimistic. He said: “This is very bad news for our area.  We have high levels of unemployment and were the region hardest hit by the recession. 

"Increasing skills and training in the Black Country should be our number one priority, as it will attract the jobs and industry our economy needs to recover.

“This decision will put Dudley and the rest of the Black Country further and further behind. I am going to talk to local business leaders and ask for meetings with Vince Cable and his colleagues to discuss how the bid can be improved or restructured.”