Shadow Defra Minister: ‘Rural areas not Gov priority’
Shadow Minister for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs David Drew MP has written a piece in the Stroud News and Journal about the ‘challenges’ of living in a rural area. He wrote that ‘rural affairs have slipped down this Government’s priorities’ and called for another Rural White Paper. The first Rural White Paper, introduced […]
Shops should be forced to accept cash
In response to the recent Access to Cash review, the website lovemoney.com polled readers on their attitudes towards cash. The review warned that the ‘death knell for cash’ in other countries had been due to shops and businesses refusing to accept cash, rather than a lack of ATM machines or bank branches. Subsequently, 82 per […]
Too much power concentrated in cities, says MP
Rachel Reeves, MP for Leeds West, has written an article in the New Statesman arguing that ‘for too long wealth and power has been concentrated in our cities’. She says that although rural areas, ex-industrial and coastal towns may be poorer, they represent a ‘different society’ – one that is more equal. Overall, she argues […]
Rural businesses close as they struggle to find staff
The Yorkshire Post reports on comments made by Susan Briggs, director of The Tourism Network, in which she said Brexit, a lack of public transport, a shortage of trained staff and the industry’s poor reputation were causing rural firms to close. David Kerfoot, the chairman of York, North Yorkshire & East Riding Enterprise Partnership, added […]
Future High Streets Fund criticised
Bill Grimsey, former chief executive at Wickes, Iceland and Focus DIY, has written in The MJ to criticise the Government’s deadline for councils to bid for money from the Future High Streets Fund. The deadline was three months after the call for proposals, which Grimsey says left councils without the time to put together quality […]
Baroness Tyler comments on bank closures
Baroness Tyler, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Social Mobility and the Lords Committee on Financial Exclusion, has written for PoliticsHome.com welcoming Nationwide’s commitment to keep branches open. It came after the building society announced that every town or city which currently has a branch will still have one in 2021. She commented: ‘I […]
Spotlight on Heart of the Village – March 2019
This newsletter is provided by the Rural Services Network. It includes a roundup of rural stories featuring on rural communities and village services. Rural Schools Struggle to recruit TES reports this week on a new study from the Department for Education that finds even ‘successful’ small rural primary schools are still struggling to overcome financial […]
