Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan has blasted today’s decision by Ministers who ‘simply don’t care about our city’s communities’ as Government once again overlooks Portsmouth in the allocation of its Levelling Up Funding.
The city MP has been working with others to submit alongside the city council a £40m proposal to the Levelling Up Fund and campaigning tirelessly calling for Ministers to award the money to Portsmouth.
The bid would have revitalised our city centre as well as improved local transport infrastructure, often ignored or forgotten for investment over the last decade.
Today the government announced that communities across the country were allocated funding but Portsmouth South was once missed out despite having not received a penny from the Chancellor for ‘levelling up’ in the Government’s previous allocations.
Responding to the Government’s failure to fund Portsmouth, MP Stephen Morgan said:
“After neglecting Portsmouth for years, the government promised its levelling up plans would provide much-needed funding into communities like ours.
“Investment in our city centre would have revitalised Portsmouth and I know from speaking with residents and local businesses that there was great hope that the government would back our bid, especially after cutting so many services in the city over the years.
“It is therefore deeply disappointing to find out today that the government has again overlooked Portsmouth, proving once and for all that ‘levelling up’ has never been anything more than a slogan. Ministers simply don’t care about our city’s communities”.
On what happens next to the Portsmouth bid for funding, the city MP said:
“Constituents will remember almost two decades ago the current Leader of the Council promised the people of Portsmouth a revitalised and vibrant city centre once again when the Tricorn finally came down. Nineteen years on, that site remains just a car park, and our city centre continues to be forgotten and ignored.
“My back the bid campaign has shown the strength of feeling of Portsmouth people and the desperate need to put the heart back into our city centre to make it a place to be proud of once again.
“The failure of investment by Government and the failure of leadership on the council is holding Portsmouth’s economy back, and letting our communities down.
“Portsmouth has the ideas to progress but its time it has the political will from Government and council to do something about it. I will continue to do what I can to make sure our city centre is a place to be proud of once again”.
The Portsmouth South proposals to the Levelling Up Fund included:
- The creation of a truly world class city centre, transforming the cultural quarter in the heart of the city, to connect communities across Portsmouth and the wider sub-region to a vibrant, cultural economy.
- A transformed Portsmouth Guildhall and New Theatre Royal, which will offer a greater range of facilities and enable new activities and performances for people to enjoy.
- A new Cultural Spine project that will link the main cultural assets in a safe, car free space for people to gather and celebrate their city, connecting the major transport links such as bus routes, park and ride routes and a mainline railway station to ensure visitors can come without the use of a private car, supporting the city’s commitment to net zero.
- Projects within walking distance of some of the poorest communities that offer opportunities to access events in a safe and car free environment, helping to tackle deprivation, health inequalities and job density issues in the region.
Responding to the Government announcement, Lisa Nandy MP, Shadow Levelling Up Secretary, added:
“The Levelling Up Fund is in chaos, beset by delays and allegations of favouritism. 15 months after the first round of allocations, just 5% of the money has made it to the communities who were promised it. And despite today’s announcement, communities across the country are still paying a Tory premium for the last 13 years.
“It takes an extraordinary arrogance to expect us to be grateful for a partial refund on the money they have stripped out of our communities, which has decimated vital local services like childcare, buses and social care.
“It is time to end this Hunger Games-style contest where communities are pitted against one another and Whitehall ministers pick winners and losers.
“That’s why Labour has set out plans for the biggest ever transfer of power out of Westminster, so local leaders can harness the skills and assets in their area to drive growth, and all people in all parts of Britain are given the backing to make a contribution.”
The city MP has vowed to continue to lobby Ministers so that Portsmouth gets the investment it deserves, asking why the area was once again overlooked for ‘levelling up’ funding, and taking a range of further actions to secure Government support for Portsmouth. The MP will also be meeting local businesses in the coming weeks to take forward ideas.
