Fay Jones MP has called on the Government to prioritise growth in rural areas like Brecon and Radnorshire ahead of The Budget next week.
Ms Jones’s call came the week before the Chancellor is due to make his Budget announcement for the next financial year. The MP urged the Chancellor Rishi Sunak to include measures in his spending plans which benefit rural areas like Brecon and Radnorshire.
Members of Parliament use the period in the run up to the Budget to lobby for financial support for specific projects. Ms Jones has joined with colleagues on the English border in a joint call for a funding pot to restore the health of the River Wye. She has also lent her support to Powys County Council’s bid for support from the Levelling Up Fund.
In last year’s Budget, Ms Jones secured £30 million of funding for the Global Centre for Rail Excellence in Coelbren near Ystradgynlais. This year, the MP is calling on the UK Government to bring the Levelling Up agenda to Mid Wales and finally give young people in rural areas the jobs and opportunities they need.
Ms Jones said:
“Next week’s Budget is going to be crucial for our recovery from the Coronarvirus. It will have Levelling Up at its very core and Brecon and Radnorshire needs to benefit from that.
We already know this is a wonderful place to live but our young people suffer from the lack of jobs and affordable housing. Stimulating the rural economy, which is heavily reliant on tourism and agriculture, can change that permanently.
The Chancellor represents a rural area like Brecon and Radnorshire. Throughout the entire Covid pandemic, he has acted quickly and decisively – providing imaginative ways to support and stimulate the economy.
Last year, the constituency benefitted from direct UK Government investment. I am enormously grateful for this game-changing support. But we have an enormous structural problems that the Welsh Labour government is not tackling.
Whether its funding to restore the health of the River Wye or giving the green light to our bid for Levelling Up funding, we need every possible chance to recover from the pandemic and to create the life chances that our young people need.”