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NEW A Towns Fund Timeline...-Last year, Robert Jenrick and Jake Berry selected 61 deprived towns to bid for £25 million each from govt.
-They chose Darwen in Berry's constituency, and Newark in Jenrick's constituency 1/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
-Jenrick told his local paper that it was the “biggest investment in Newark in a very long time”
-At a hustings during the election, he boasted: “I helped to secure a £25 million town deal (...)” 2/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
-At a hustings during the election, he boasted: “I helped to secure a £25 million town deal (...)” 2/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
-This year, Jenrick sat on a Newark council board that lobbied his own dept. for the maximum £25 million
-Mysteriously, he stopped showing up to board meetings and his name was scrubbed from the register (days before a damaging NAO report published) 3/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
-Mysteriously, he stopped showing up to board meetings and his name was scrubbed from the register (days before a damaging NAO report published) 3/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
-Steve Reed, shadow housing secretary, demands a "full explanation" in commons.
-Spx for MHCLG says Newark was selected by "another minister based on a robust and objective process" 4/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
-Spx for MHCLG says Newark was selected by "another minister based on a robust and objective process" 4/5 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/robert-jenrick-selected-own-constituency-for-25m-funding-zx2qd2tgz
For full background on the Towns Fund, I suggest this thread by @chrishanretty and in particular this slide.
It shows that Jenrick and Berry chose seats which were disproportionately Tory marginals, rather than the most deprived areas. 5/5 https://twitter.com/chrishanretty/status/1309224483933360128
It shows that Jenrick and Berry chose seats which were disproportionately Tory marginals, rather than the most deprived areas. 5/5 https://twitter.com/chrishanretty/status/1309224483933360128
