Tim Farron writes to parish councils in Cumbria for levelling up ideas

MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron has sent a letter to every parish council that lies within the Westmorland Furness Council area asking for their thoughts on how the county can be ‘levelled up’ with the rest of the country.

The letter comes after Mr Farron became a member of the cross-party committee tasked with scrutinising the Government’s Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill.

The committee will go through every line of the bill and Mr Farron will have the chance to put forward amendments.

In the letter, Mr Farron wrote: “Our communities are wonderful places to live and work but they are at risk due to a lack of affordable homes, unreliable public transport and a lack of well paid jobs.

“Being on this committee gives me the best opportunity we have had so far to do something about this.

“In the Levelling Up Bill the government is sadly not currently going to properly address those problems - but by being part of this committee, I will have the chance to propose amendments to make sure that they do.  I aim to look Conservative ministers and MPs in the eye and challenge them to help our communities in Cumbria.

“This is where I need your help. I would be really grateful to hear from you any thoughts and ideas you may have about how Cumbria can be “levelled up” with the rest of the country. This will greatly help me as I put forward amendments to the Bill in this committee.”

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Committee held its first meeting in Parliament this morning (June 21) where members took evidence from Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, CEO of UK Research and Innovation, Professor Mairi Spowage director of the Fraser of Allander Institute – an economics department at the University of Strathclyde, Tracy Brabin, the Mayor of West Yorkshire, and Ben Still, the managing director of West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

COMMITTEE: Tim Farron MP has joined the House of Commons Committee to scrutinise Government’s Levelling Up Bill

The committee will meet for the next three months to agree on amendments to the bill, which will then be voted on in the House of Commons.

“I wouldn't normally opt to spend days on end stuck in a stuffy committee room in Parliament but I chose this fate because I think this Bill gives me the chance to change Cumbria for better, if we can force the Government to listen,” said Mr Farron.

“Our communities are wonderful places to live and work but they are at risk due to a lack of affordable homes, unreliable public transport and a lack of well paid jobs - the government is sadly not currently going to properly address those problems.

“But by being part of this Committee, I will have the chance to propose amendments to make sure that they do.  I aim to look Conservative ministers and MPs in the eye and challenge them to help our communities in Cumbria.

“I'll keep constituents up to date throughout the next three months and I will be really grateful for any advice, thoughts or experiences that you'd like to share with me about how we can actually ‘level up’ our communities and give everyone the best possible chance in life.”