Funding Changes May Hit South West Transport

The south west of England already has a deep suspicion that it is the poor relation as far as transport funding is concerned, and these feelings can only be heightened by changes to the way that the government funds road and rail projects.

Unwelcome spotlight thrown on South West transport failings

The south west is one of a number of regions that take this view, but the winter storms that destroyed the main rail link at Dawlish have thrown an unwelcome spotlight on the problems. It is not helped by the fact that the M5 Motorway is the only main road link into the area.

A report by the Transport Select Committee said a new system from 2015 would encourage private-sector funding, and that could disadvantage regions with less private sector money, said the report. The South West already receives the lowest spend on transport in the country.

Using records from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), it can be noted that in 2011-12 £184 was spent per head of population on transport in the region, representing the lowest level in the UK and less than a third of the level in London where £644 was spent, according to the ONS. The transport committee recommended local transport spending be less concentrated on London.

Devon County Council leader, John Hart, said he recognised the imbalance. "That's why we've been lobbying the government," he said. "We lobbied hard on Dawlish [railway line]. We've been arguing for quite a while now on the need for money to be spent on improving the A303.

"We don't mind being competitive as long as we've got an equal shout. We're confident we can make these cases, but what we need is for the money to be available."

John Pollard, leader of Cornwall Council, said he wanted Cornwall to get its "fair share". "We're fighting hard to make sure the projects we've got in train, like the dualling of the A30, do gain equal traction with high profile stuff like HS2," said Mr Pollard. "We need to be convincing government that we need the packages of money that our community needs. It's always a competition."

Labour MP Louise Ellman, who is the chair of the committee, said inequality between London and the regions had gone on for too long. She also said the new regime, in which local authorities submit competing bids for central funding, would lead to money being wasted on failed bids.

The Institute for Public Policy Research told the committee its research suggested spending in London was £2,596 per head and as low as £5 per head in the north east of England.