MP's rallying call - return powers to local people

ARUNDEL and South Downs MP Nick Herbert has accused the Government of presiding over a "decade of disrespect" for rural communities and he has called on ministers to return powers to local people.

By The Newsroom

Published 23rd Jun 2009, 17:09 BST

Updated 8th Jun 2018, 04:31 BST

The MP also underlined the importance of ensuring access to broadband in rural areas, including West Sussex where many households still cannot get the service.

Speaking in a Commons debate, he claimed rural communities had been let down by a Government which has taken powers away and given them to a plethora of quangos.

Mr Herbert, who is Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, said the economic recession was hitting rural areas hard, with job losses affecting key rural industries and unemployment rising faster than in urban areas.

The MP also cricised the closure of 1,400 rural post offices since 2000. He was speaking in a Commons debate on June 15.