The Minister for Communities and Resilience (Mr Mark Francois)
I am pleased to announce today the publication of the “Coastal Communities Fund Annual Progress Report 2015”.
The report sets out the impressive achievements of the fund across the UK since it was launched in 2012. It shows the many and varied ways our coastal and seaside towns are rising to the challenges they face to diversify and transform their economies, and strengthen their appeal as places to live, work and visit.
Over 200 projects supported by the fund UK-wide have received £120 million to date and are also attracting significant amounts of co-funding, over £200 million so far. As the report highlights, every £1 we invest has the potential to create a boost of up to £8 to our coastal economies.
The recent decision to extend the fund by a further £90 million over four years to 2020-21 will help secure the long-term future of our seaside towns so that communities can drive forward their vision, unleash business opportunities and prosperity. The next round of bidding will commence in the summer of 2016.
I have today written to all coastal MPs in the UK, and to all 118 coastal community teams in England, with a web link to the published report.
The report can be found on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coastal-communities-fund-annual-progress-report-2015
I have placed a copy in the Library of the House.
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