Phew! That was a month that was – a few weeks when the outlook changed dramatically for business, local authorities and we humble citizens.

Vague pre-election talk about cuts to come are now being made concrete by grim-faced Ministers in the new coalition Government.

So far, Bradford has provided the backdrop to some momentous national announcements First, we had Prime Minister David Cameron and Business Secretary Vince Cable coming to Saltaire to launch the coalition’s new economic strategy.

Then, the coalition Cabinet came to Odsal Stadium for its first gathering outside Downing Street where the new £1 billion regional growth fund and Local Enterprise Partnerships were announced to replace Yorkshire Forward and the other eight regional development agencies.

In between, in the most momentous Budget for a generation, Chancellor George Osborne confirmed that the cuts will be quicker and deeper than anything mentioned before polling day.

Mr Osborne’s measures have been dubbed the ‘kill-or-cure’ Budget, and that seems to sum up the mood of many around here.

But his reliance on the private sector plugging the gap left by slashed public spending through an export boom is causing some furrowed brows.

Edward Stanners, a veteran of Bradford’s textile trade, including being one of the last to run Salts Mill when it made cloth, said relying on the private sector to make up funding shortfalls was a gamble.

“It’s a tall order to expect manufacturing to take up the slack. Over the past 20 years or so manufacturing capacity has fallen significantly, and I’m not sure it is in a position to do what the Chancellor expects.

“The other key issue is that we no longer have as many people with the level of experience of running businesses in difficult times as we had 25 years ago, and that could have an impact on our ability to rise to the challenge.”

Mr Stanners, a director of Bradford worsted cloth firm Clissold and also involved in a West Yorkshire cushion-making business, wondered where the extra demand for UK products and services would come from.

He said that countries in the Eurozone – part of the UK’s main export market – were also cutting back hard following the crises in Greece, Spain and other countries. Germany and France were also introducing austerity packages.

Stephen Wright, who runs the UK’s leading pneumatic components firm Thorite, based at Laisterdyke, highlighted other issues such as corruption among trade officials in some foreign markets which hindered doing business.

He also wondered whether the UK private sector could live up to the Government’s expectations given that the recovery was ‘flaky’.

“It’s a flickering picture. One day things are clearly getting better, and then they go back again. It’s sometimes difficult to tell what the actual situation is and whether we are really seeing a longer-term recovery. The Government may genuinely believe that the private sector can provide the answer to the dire economic situation, but in the current uncertain climate it will be difficult to ensure that is the case.”

Overall, George Osborne’s first Budget has left local businesses reasonably pleased, even relieved that measures such as the increase in Capital Gains Tax from 18 per cent to 28 per cent were not more severe.

According to Sandy Needham, chief executive of Bradford Chamber of Commerce, which represents 1,100 businesses, there was more for business to cheer about, particularly the Chancellor’s confirmation that his Labour predecessor’s proposed one per cent rise in employers’ National Insurance contributions – the so-called ‘jobs tax’ – would be scrapped.

She said: “The decision to cut Corporation Tax for the next four years was welcome news, although we do feel that it could have been allowed to go lower than 24 per cent, perhaps down to 20 per cent. The mounting deficit had to be addressed while at the same time ensuring that businesses can help the economy grow and get more people into work again.”

George Osborne also announced a bank levy from January based on the balance sheets of UK banks and building societies and the UK operations of overseas banks. It is expected to raise £2 billion a year for the Exchequer by 2012.

Iain Cornish, chief executive of the Bradford-based Yorkshire Building Society, the UK’s second-largest, did not expect the society to be hit by the levy due to its reliance mainly on retail deposits, which are exempt.

He said: “We knew the bank levy was coming, but I believe it has been pitched about right.”

Perhaps the biggest surprise in the Budget statement was the Chancellor’s decision to axe the regional development agencies, including Yorkshire Forward.

This came only weeks after Vince Cable told a Bradford business audience that Yorkshire Forward and agencies in the North East and North West were likely to survive at the expense of those in the East of England and the South East.

It was part of the new Government’s approach to generating more economic activity in the North.

Sandy Needham said businesses had been generally supportive of a slimmed-down Yorkshire Forward being retained and had not expected its abolition to form part of the Budget speech.

She said: “Although it was seen as unaccountable and remote by some, Yorkshire Forward has had enterprise at the heart of its operations and done some good work.

“After hearing Vince Cable’s remarks, few of us expected the northern RDAs to get the chop. Now that has happened, it’s vital that we get our act together quickly to ensure that local business plays its part in the new Local Enterprise Partnerships being formed with local authorities.

“The new system means that local areas will have to bid for a share of the £1 billion in the Regional Growth Fund. Business expertise will be essential in that process.

“The geographical areas for LEPs are yet to be decided, and we have until September 6 to give our views, so the timetable is tight. An area based on West Yorkshire would seem a sensible approach.”