'It's like the Hunger Games' - Northern towns shouldn't be forced to compete for money they desperately need, says Wigan MP

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Northern towns should not have to compete among themselves for government attention to get desperately needed funding, Wigan’s MP has said.

Senior Labour and Conservative politicians outlined their competing visions for levelling up the North during a conference today, March 11.

And the Shadow Levelling Up Secretary, Lisa Nandy, took the opportunity to slam the government for making Northern towns and cities compete for money controlled by Whitehall, rather than allowing communities in the region to drive its own recovery.

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Ms Nandy and Levelling Up Minister Neil O’Brien were among the speakers at the first Northern Agenda Live event organised by Manchester Evening News publisher Reach, held at The Chronicle and Journal offices in Newcastle city centre.

Ms Nandy, who has been the MP for Wigan for the last 12 years, said that the North has not only seen its infrastructure disintegrate, but has seen an exodus of its talent over the last decade.

'For many young people, it's not a choice, they simply have to go if they are to build there future', she said, draining the region of spending power.

"We'll reject the system that we've been handed by the government, where ministers and civil servants still dole out small pots of money from Whitehall and ask communities to compete for it,” she told the conference.

“It's like some kind of version of the Hunger Games. It's desperately unambitious that some of us will and therefore others must lose.

"More than that, it just doesn't work. Because levelling up isn't about driving people down. Wigan doesn't thrive because Barnsley is doing badly. We rise up together."

What do you make of her comments? Have your say in our comments below

A Labour government, she says,