Tendring: Haven Gateway funding faces the axe (From Harwich and Manningtree Standard)

Tendring: Haven Gateway funding faces the axe

4:23pm Tuesday 28th July 2009

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LONG-awaited regeneration projects in Tendring could be axed if they are deemed not to "deliverable", it has been announced.

The news comes on the back of proposals that next year’s funding pot from Haven Gateway could be slashed by £2.65 million.

The Communities and Local Government department last year gave the Haven Gateway Partnership more than £6 million for improvements in Colchester, Tendring and parts of Suffolk, including Ipswich.

Next year was set to see a further £6million.

David Ralph, chief executive of Haven Gateway, has urged Tendring Council's new administration to review its priorty projects before next year else they will be more likely to face being cut if the proposals go ahead.

Mr Ralph said the partnership would lobby hard to convince the government to change its decision.

"If the Goverment decides to continue with these proposals then all of the projects are at risk,” he added.

“The potential is for us to lose just under half of our capital budget for 2010/11.

“Obviously it is disappointing.

“We knew there was going to be a squeeze on public sector finance because of the amount of money that the Government is going to have to borrow.

“I think this is the start of a tightening of belts across all the public sector over the next few years.”

The new tory administration in Tendring was told by Haven Gateway it was able to review the priorities earmarked for funding by the previous Tendring First administration.

But when decisions are made on what projects to fund if the proposals to cut the money go ahead, they will be made on a basis of how likely they are to be delivered.

Neil Stock, leader of Tendring Council, said: "We are re-jigging the projects.

"We are going to have to show real value for money with every proposal to Haven Gateway."

But he was confident the council could prove the case for the £100,000 earmarked for Jaywick and also said the newly reviewed Harwich Masterplan could be announced in a matter of weeks.

A total of £50,000 had been set down for Harwich regeneration in the 2010/2011 Haven Gateway funding programme and £150,000 for Clacton.

Housing minister John Healey said the money was being transferred to a national fund, which local authorities could bid for.

"The argument that regions will lose out from our proposal to switch money from the Growth Funding programme to meet our pledge to build thousands of extra homes is misleading.

"Regions could in fact gain more than they lose by bidding for a share of the £1.5 billion pot announced in our Housing Pledge.”

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