Calls for improvements at Moor Farm and Seaton Burn raised with the Prime Minister
Emma Foody, Member of Parliament for Cramlington and Killingworth, has continued her campaign for investment in Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts by raising the issue during Prime Minister’s Questions.
The need for investment to upgrade Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts has been raised by Ms Foody on a number of occasions in Parliament, in meetings with Ministers and during a debate that she held last month.
During Prime Minister’s Questions, Ms Foody stated that “Successive Tory Governments failed to invest in the North East’s transport infrastructure. This Labour government is changing that with the £1.8billion recently secured for the region. Upgrading Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts in my constituency can build on that, unlocking growth and it’s supported by local people and businesses”.
The MP went on to criticise the Northumberland Conservative Councillors for their lack of support for the project following a series of comments and responses received by the Roads Minister during her recent debate and in a Parliamentary Question. Ms Foody said: “Does the Prime Minister share my disappointment that, rather than support my campaign the Conservative leadership in Northumberland are actively undermining lobbying efforts to deliver this game-changer for the North East?”.
In response, the Prime Minister said:
“She’s doing a superb job for Northumberland. I am happy to set out what we’ve delivered. Over £400million of funding for Northumberland County Council, that’s a 5.8% increase this year, an 80% increase in homes starting construction, a near £30m increase in funding for Northumbria Police and 14 free breakfast clubs, supporting over 3,000 children. That’s the difference a Labour government makes”.
Following the Question Ms Foody commented
“Since being elected, I have lobbied Ministers, spoken in the House of Commons, written to officials and led a debate in Parliament calling for investment in Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts. This has been supported by the local people, businesses and the North East Combined Authority.
“Rather than working to make the case for investment in these crucial pieces of local infrastructure, Northumberland Conservative Council leadership, these efforts have been downplayed and undermined. It is disappointing that the Conservative Council leadership appears not to have been working to secure this investment or even made the case to the government for the need for the investment.
“I’ll continue to make the case for this critical infrastructure for our region, whilst the Northumberland Conservative leadership merely snipes from the sidelines”.
Ms Foody’s question follows comments from a Senior Conservative in Northumberland labelling the debate which set out the case for the investment in Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts, including with representations from local businesses, as ‘pointless’.
In addition, Conservative Councillors have made comments claiming that previous funding for the roundabouts had been withdrawn. During Ms Foody’s recent debate, the Roads Minister stated that “As with all schemes in the RIS pipeline, the proposals are funded for their development stages only, and there has been no commitment and no funding for their full delivery at any stage. To say otherwise is simply untrue”.
Information provided by the Department for Transport further confirmed that ‘The Department for Transport has received no formal representations from officials or elected representatives at Northumberland County Council on the Road Investment Strategy, Moor Farm Roundabout or Seaton Burn roundabout in the last 12 months’. It has further been confirmed that Northumberland County Council made no submissions to the Spending Review for investment in Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts.