• Theresa May unveils £1.6bn “stronger towns fund” to swing Labour votes that critics have called a ‘bribe’ 
• The South West region would receive second lowest allocation of £33m over 4 years despite being one of the poorest regions in the whole country
• Labour MP warns that this is more evidence of the south west not getting “our fair share” and calls for Tory MPs to find their voice on lack of funding fairness

Plymouth MP Luke Pollard has today criticised the Prime Minister’s latest last-ditch attempt to win votes for her unpopular Brexit deal promising short term cash for different parts of the UK.

The Prime Minister’s so called ‘Stronger Towns Fund’ that critics have labelled a ‘bribe’, proposes allocating £1.6bn of funding to deprived communities across England over four years.

Plymouth’s Labour MP has stated “my vote is not for sale” and pointed out despite being one of England’s most deprived regions, the south west would receive the second lowest amount of money compared to others.

Luke Pollard MP said:

“This is a cynical plan from the Prime Minister that reeks of desperation. This announcement takes our region for fools. Since 2010 this Tory Government, backed up by our region’s Tory MPs have voted to slash and cut our public services. They’ve cut transport funding, police funding, cut care for the elderly and our most vulnerable kids with social care cuts and they’ve voted to slash support to councils like Plymouth which has lost £322m in cumulative cuts in the last three years alone.

 

£33m over four years divided by 5.4m people in the south west is not just a paltry sum it is an insult to the region. Assuming Plymouth received that whole allocation, it wouldn’t even make up for the latest cuts to our city council’s budget the Tories voted for a few weeks ago. We need our fair share of funding not insultingly small sums that ignore the huge consequences of austerity on the poorest in our communities.

 

My vote on Brexit isn’t for sale. I will continue to demand our fair share of funding and I challenge our region’s Tory MPs to start standing up for the South West. The silence from south west Conservatives on this funding insult has been depressing. They’re rolling over and accepting the poor deal our region gets when they should be raising their voices. This Government is getting it wrong, they’re not giving us our fair share and they’re insulting us with this pathetic sum.”