Plymouth two Labour MPs, Alison Seabeck and Linda Gilroy, will this Thursday meet with Local Government Minister John Healy to discuss Plymouth’s regeneration.

It will be a chance to outline Plymouth’s growth strategy and highlight areas where the support of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is necessary.

They will be accompanied by representatives from Plymouth City Council, the City Development Company, together with neighbouring MPs.

This is the latest in a series of top-level moves aimed at engaging Government understanding and support fully in Plymouth’s plans for the future.  In April, Linda Gilroy delivered a speech to the House of Commons on Plymouth’s economic development and in the previous month the two Labour MPs met with the Chief Secretary of the Treasury, Yvette Cooper, to update her on the City’s progress.

Linda Gilroy said: “Our intention is to highlight to the Minister that there are a number of areas where Plymouth’s ambitions dovetail with the Government’ s own priorities – such as building affordable housing, creating a skilled workforce and moving jobs out of London and the South East”.

Linda added "Plymouth has a clear vision on how we can make the most of our city and strengthen opportunities for its people. This will be a good chance to make sure that the DCLG help us to keep our agenda in front of Ministers not just in that department – but in other departments too."

11 June 2008