On Friday 7th April, West Dorset’s MP Chris Loder hailed the launch of the new Rural Prosperity Fund as a ‘top-up’ to the existing UK Shared Prosperity Fund which was launched last year. This will entail a £2,066,000 boost for improving digital infrastructure and productivity, job creation and the resilience of communities in Dorset alone. Mr Loder said;
“On Friday last week, Dorset was announced as a successful recipient of almost £2.1 million of funding as part of the Rural Prosperity Fund."
"While Dorset is already receiving approximately £6 million through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, this is a separate package that provides a ‘top-up’ for rural communities like in West Dorset. Many of which, as I have argued since my election, need the ‘levelling up’ focus as much as in cities.”
The launch comes after a sustained campaign by the West Dorset MP to reform the Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) because of a lack of benefit it brought for West Dorset. Speaking of the Dorset LEP, Mr Loder said; “I am pleased to see the Government reforming the old LEP system into Shared and Rural Prosperity Funds which will give far more fairness to the rural needs of West Dorset as the urban East Dorset which in my view dominated the LEP allocations for years”. Mr Loder also publicly stated that he had been lobbying the Government to abolish LEPs during a BBC Politics South West interview in July last year.
The funding is to be administered across the UK by Local Authorities under the guidance of the Government, who have stated that the purpose of this new scheme is to:
- support new and existing rural businesses to develop new products and facilities that will be of wider benefit to the local economy. This includes farm businesses looking to diversify income streams
- support new and improved community infrastructure, providing essential community services and assets for local people and businesses to benefit the local economy
Mr Loder continued; “I would strongly encourage any community groups or businesses who may be able to benefit from this scheme to contact their Dorset Council representative to make their representations known”
