Campaigners ‘furious’ Weymouth and Portland won't receive funding for forgotten towns
Weymouth and Portland have been overlooked by the government for a share of £1billion to support left behind towns
A Weymouth town councillor has called for a “stronger voice” to represent Weymouth on a national level.
Weymouth and Portland were recently overlooked by the government for a share of £1billion to support left behind towns.
More than 50 UK towns will each be given £20 million over a 10-year period to help regenerate high streets and tackle anti-social behaviour.
Campaigners in West Dorset believe the area would have met the criteria for funding which measured deprivation, job opportunities and levels of pay.
Councillor Matthew Bell spoke to us in an individual capacity as a local resident, he said: “We’ve got a real problem with poverty in certain parts of the town and a lot of that is due to low wage employment in the area. We are not providing the breadth of opportunities for young people.”
According to a recent study, parts of Weymouth and Portland are inside the top 10% of most deprived areas nationally.
“We can't just continue to rely on bucket and spade tourism,” Cllr Bell said.
“We've got to move things forward. We've got to get some technology industries in the area or make Weymouth a renewable energy centre.”
He accused locally elected officials and MPs of being ineffective in government funding talks, adding: “There are really good people and councillors in the area with strong and vibrant visions for the future.
"They want to improve transport in the area, increase employment opportunities and wages but they can't implement them because of a lack of funds. We need stronger voices so that we're not repeatedly missed out.”
The funding is set to be used on local priorities such as reviving high streets, improving transport and growing the local economy.
Cllr Bell added: “People come to Weymouth and see the beautiful landscape and the blue flag beach and think, everything must be perfect, but there are problems. Weymouth should be a gem on the south coast but it's bit of a rough diamond at the moment.”