"We are Cinderella in the South West." > missing out again on central government funding

Whilst the debate heats up on priorities for spending here in the South West
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... the cry goes up of 'What about us!'

We miss out again as Northern Ireland promised £1billion funding deal

By HannahFinch | Posted: June 26, 2017

Business leaders say the Westcountry will once again miss out in Theresa May's £1billion DUP funding deal for Northern Ireland.

Cornwall Chamber of Commerce chief executive Kim Conchie has written an open letter to the county's six Tory MPs calling on them to stand up for Cornwall while showcasing what its businesses can do in return to boost productivity, agriculture and hospitality.

He said: "This is a huge cock up by Theresa May and it was inevitable that Northern Ireland would get the money because they hold the balance of power.

"There will be other poor fringes of the UK feeling the same as we do because we are not getting our fair share. It is politics over economics and that is not the right way to prioritise spending."

In the open letter, Mr Conchie states that businesses and government can work together 'to move Cornwall quickly away from being the poor man of England, to becoming a world-leading innovation- and productivity-led regional economy that we and the rest of the UK are proud of.'

It adds: " We can only achieve this if we work with you in a seamless fashion sharing successes and challenges on all sides; and if Cornwall and Scilly receives the Government support it needs in order to flourish."

The Northern Ireland funding package is part of an agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party to prop up May's minority Government. Under a "supply and confidence" arrangement intended to last for the full Parliament, the DUP guarantees that its 10 MPs will vote with the Government on the Queen's Speech, the Budget, and legislation relating to Brexit and national security.

Tim Jones, chairman of the Devon and Cornwall Business Council, said that the region is once again playing 'Cinderella' by being continually overlooked by government for vital infrastructure investment.

He said: "Under the Barnett formula, We routinely get far less than devolved government areas and we are way behind Scotland and Wales.

"Northern Ireland has had some serious issues to contend with but the government promised us that they would rebalance the economy. This move does nothing but continue the notion that we are cinderella in the South West."

We miss out again as Northern Ireland promised £1billion funding deal | Devon Live
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