Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress his Department has made in levelling up rural regions of the UK.

Levelling up the whole of the United Kingdom, including rural areas, is at the heart of the Government’s agenda. Levelling up means empowering local leaders and communities to drive real change; boosting living standards, particularly where they are lower; spreading opportunity and improving public services, particularly where they are weaker; and restoring local pride across the UK, whether in a large city, town or rural area. That is why the Government has put in place a range of support for rural areas, which includes the £1 billion agreement with the industry to deliver the Shared Rural Network which will see 4G mobile connectivity increase to 95% geographic coverage across the UK.

Rural areas are also able to access support from a range of dedicated growth funds put in place by this Government. For example, the £4.8 billion Levelling up Fund and the upcoming UK Shared Prosperity Fund, worth over £2.6 billion, will help people access opportunity in places in need, such as rural and coastal communities, and for people in disadvantaged groups across the UK.