MINISTERS ASKED TO PROTECT CORNWALL'S EUROPEAN FUNDS

1.21.22pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 19th Jul 2010

At approximately 11:45am today St Ives MP, Andrew George, took part in Business Questions in Parliament to ask the Leader of the House of Commons to call on Ministers to address concerns that essential European Convergence Funding has been halted for Cornwall.

Mr George asked the Leader of the House, the Rt Hon Sir George Young MP, to call Ministers from the Treasury and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skill to the Commons to answer urgent questions on the impact of this week's decision by the South West Regional Development Agency (which is itself being abolished by the Government) to halt vital economic development projects under Cornwall's European Convergence Programme, especially those which do not require any UK Exchequer contribution.

In his response the Leader of the House said that he was concerned by the possible impacts of the RDA's decision, particularly in those cases where UK Exchequer contributions were not required and that he would look into the matter further.

Mr George will be having further conversations with Ministers today. The discussions so far between Mr George, his Cornish Liberal Democrat Parliamentary colleagues Dan Rogerson (MP for North Cornwall) and Stephen Gilbert (MP for St Austell & Newquay), and Government Ministers indicate that none of the previously approved schemes should be in any doubt.