- As part of his campaign to secure £20million for Rother Valley from the Levelling Up Fund, local MP Alexander Stafford hosts Adjournment Day Debate.
- This follows success of his petition, recently presented to Parliament, which was signed by over 1800 constituents concerned about high streets.
- A priority one area, Rother Valley has a high chance of success when placing a bid, but Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (RMBC) must seize this opportunity and submit a strong bid.
Alexander Stafford, local Member of Parliament for Rother Valley, took his campaign to level up his constituency to Parliament again today by hosting an adjournment day debate on the importance of securing £20 million from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund.
The fund, announced by the Government in March, ringfences £4.8 billion to improve deprived areas, offering local authorities the opportunity to bid for up to £20 million to invest in projects that benefit the whole community. As a priority 1 area, a strong bid could see RMBC awarded with a grant for the full £20 million and the Government is providing £125,000 in funding to support local authorities to produce strong proposals from the second round onwards.
A fervent campaigner for levelling up his now blue-wall seat, Alexander is on record as being a strong advocate for high streets in Rother Valley and this, he says, is where RMBC should be looking to invest money from the Levelling Up Fund, to ensure that they survive in the post-COVID world.
Commenting, Alexander said:
Over many years, chronic lack of investment in Rother Valley’s high streets means that areas such as Dinnington, Maltby, Thurcroft, and Kiveton Park risk withering on the vine under Labour’s watch.
In the Levelling Up Fund, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to rejuvenate our high streets, from Dinnington to Thurcroft, Maltby to Kiveton and everywhere in between. Our towns have immense potential, filled to bursting with warm, friendly, talented people, and I hope that RMBC will submit a strong bid that allows them to build high streets for their future.