Fears Cornwall could get less than £2million in replacement EU funding in 2021
Cornwall Council is asking the Government for £700m over the next 10 years
There are fears that Cornwall could be set to get as little as £1.8million from the Government to replace its current EU funding.
Cornwall Council has submitted a request to the Government for £700m over the next 10 years to replace funding which it was set to get due to being one of the poorest regions in the EU.
However there are now concerns that in the first year of the Government’s new funding programme Cornwall could get just 5% of what it needs at most.
Tim Dwelly, Cornwall Council Cabinet member for economic development, accused the Prime Minister Boris Johnson of breaking his promise that Cornwall would get all of its funding replaced following Brexit.
He said: “Boris Johnson promised us the same investment that we got from the EU, he literally put that to the people of Cornwall in advance of the last General Election and now he seems to have completely broken his promise.
“It is so disappointing and it is the worst kind of politics, saying something to win votes and then not delivering on it. Here in Cornwall the people who voted for Brexit and voted for the Conservatives did so because they believed or were told it was about taking back control and a commitment by our Government to continue to support Cornwall. They will be feeling used.”
Cllr Dwelly issued a statement saying that the Government spending review, recently announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak, indicated that Cornwall would be “significantly worse off” under the proposed new Shared Prosperity Fund which was set to provide the funding lost from the EU due to Brexit.
He said: “To stand still, with EU levels of funding, Cornwall would have needed the Government to commit to at least £100m a year from the Shared Prosperity Fund. This was the pledge made unequivocally by Prime Minister Boris Johnson before the 2019 General Election. We now know this pledge is broken.
“Instead of matching the current EU funding, Cornwall will at best get just over half of this amount – and we don’t even know when yet. If Cornwall’s current allocation of EU structural funds in the UK (3.8%) is repeated in the new fund that replaces it, it will get £57m a year.
“This is way, way short of the £100m we need just to stand still. Far from being levelling up, it’s actually levelling down.”
Cllr Dwelly said that there had also been indications that control over the funds would be held in Whitehall and not devolved to local authorities as hoped.
He said: “There is now a very real risk that the red tape many agreed was a problem with EU funding will continue. As things stand, Whitehall looks set to centralise control over the funds, with decisions made in London rather than Cornwall. This would be the worst of both worlds for Cornwall: less funding and even less control.”
But the council Cabinet member’s key concern is the amount of money that Cornwall might get from the Shared Prosperity Fund in 2021.
With concerns about the impact that Covid-19 has had on the Cornish economy combined with the possible impact that Brexit could have Cornwall Council has highlighted a need to maintain funding to help with the recovery.
But with the Government announcing that the initial funding pot will be £220m for the entire country there are fears that Cornwall could get just £1.8m in the first year.
Cllr Dwelly said: “The Chancellor announced that next year, just as the EU funding ends, only £220m of pilot funding will be made available for the whole UK. Here in Cornwall and Scilly, if this amount is distributed in in the same way as the Government’s previous Growth Deal, Cornwall will only get £1.8m in a year it needed £100 million to stand still.
“Even if Cornwall and Scilly’s LEP region were given the same amount as all LEP regions, the figure would only reach £5.9 million.
“These figures are staggeringly low. This is a year in which Cornwall is trying to tackle the huge economic damage of Covid here. And it is the year Brexit happens, deal or no deal. It is genuinely shocking to think that Government expects Cornwall to gear up for these huge challenges with about 5% of the budget we need. In 2021 the levelling down will be particularly savage. We can only hope that our MPs persuade the Government to think again – and fast.”
Cllr Dwelly added: “I personally was ready and willing to welcome the Government announcement on funding to replace our previous EU funds – I would have been first in line to praise them for that if they had done so. But it now looks very unlikely.”