Vince Cable to unveil Government 'intervention' plan to boost British industry He will also announce the extension of the Employer Ownership Pilot scheme, which gives businesses access to £250m funding for vocational training; the launch of an Innovation and Knowledge Centre in Synthetic Biology; and funding for two competitions in the area of energy efficiency. However, the announcements are set to be over-shadowed by stinging criticism from the Public Accounts select committee of the Coalition's existing scheme, the Regional Growth Fund. According to the committee, the fund has allocated just £60m of a possible £1.4bn to help boost British companies. In a report published on Tuesday, Margaret Hodge, chairman of the PAC, said: "Given the dire state of the economy, it is nothing short of scandalous that so few projects funded by the Regional Growth Fund have actually got off the ground." The Coalition's efforts at kick-starting the economy was also criticised at the annual meeting of the Trade Union Congress. Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the TUC, said: "It's clear that austerity simply isn't working. In effect, the economy has become a gigantic laboratory. A cross-party group of MPs called for the Prime Minister to appoint a Minister for Manufacturing and agree to an annual "Industrial Policy Statement" around Budget Day. The Associate Parliamentary Manufacturing Group (APMG) issued a paper arguing that manufacturers need a "hotline" to Government and a "go-to man" to defend their interests so they can generate economic growth. Chris White MP, co-chair of the APMG, said: "UK manufacturing growth is not a party-political issue; nor is it a challenge we can tackle in a fragmented, piecemeal manner. Other economies have benefited enormously from government leadership on industrial growth - so can the UK.