Suffolk's politicians have poured scorn on the system of government funding after Suffolk, including Babergh and the Hadleigh area, missed out on millions of pounds for 'levelling up'.

The decision not to award Suffolk a share of the £2.1 billion offered out in the second round of Levelling Up grants will impact planned public transport improvements across the county and sports projects in Ipswich.

Jack Abbott, Labour's parliamentary candidate for Ipswich who used to live in Chelmondiston, said: "I'm absolutely fed up with this Hunger Games approach to funding, where our councils are having to go cap in hand to the Conservative government to compete with other areas that have also been starved of cash.

"The Conservatives treat Ipswich as a complete afterthought – yet another example of the town's current MP failing to deliver.

"This is a real hammer blow for Ipswich and has put crucial projects at risk.

"The Conservatives have slashed more than £250 million of annual funding since 2010, leading to the loss of so many of our precious public services.

"We need more than sticking plasters. We need change. We need proper funding. We need a Labour government."

Jack Abbott

Ipswich Borough Council's rejected bid was for £18 million, which would have supported plans for a new sports and athletics centre in Gainsborough and the regeneration of Broomhill Lido.

Suffolk County Council's bid also included money that would have been earmarked for Ipswich, something Ipswich Borough Council leader Cllr David Ellesmere called "doubly disappointing".

Labour's Cllr Ellesmere said "The council is bitterly disappointed that the government has turned down our Levelling Up bid.

"We and our partners will now need to review the viability of the Gainsborough sports centre and Broomhill Lido projects.

"While we won't rush into any decisions, there is no disguising that this is a significant setback."

Out of 525 bids across the UK in the latest round of funding, a total of 111 were awarded grants.

Successful bidders included Essex, which gained £40 million for regeneration projects, and Tendring District Council, which received nearly £20m for affordable homes and a new library.

Green Party Cllr Andrew Stringer, leader of the opposition group at Suffolk County Council, said: "Suffolk loses out yet again, while other nearby areas have been successful with government funding for cycle and bus routes and train connections, as well as affordable housing and libraries.

"Suffolk desperately needs improvements in all of these areas, yet in the new culture of begging-bowl politics, it's the Conservative-run Suffolk County Council that comes up short."

The amount of Levelling Up funding to the richer southeast in this round was higher than the sum given to the northeast, although Rishi Sunak has claimed the north has gained more money per person.

Prime Minister Sunak's own constituency of Richmond in Yorkshire received £19 million.

A bid for funding to be spent on public transport and dentists had also been made in Waveney.

Responding to its failure, Liberal Democrat town councillor and Waveney resident Adam Robertson said: "The Conservative government has chosen to ignore the pleas of our local community and the local Tory MP Peter Aldous, showing yet again they are taking families here for granted.

"Had our bid been successful, the lives of people in Waveney would have been significantly improved.

"Instead, we have been left out and forced to fend for ourselves while the Prime Minister lines the pocket of his own area. It's a disgrace.

"The people of Waveney have been let down today, but the Liberal Democrats will ensure that the government's decision does not mean we are left behind.

"We will never stop fighting for a fair deal for our community."

'Levelling up' was a key element of Boris Johnson's election campaign, with the aim of closing the gap between the rich and the poor.

Conservative Cllr Paul West, Suffolk County Council cabinet member for Ipswich, operational highways and flooding, said: "We are of course disappointed that Suffolk's bid was unsuccessful.

"But we are hardly surprised given that Suffolk is not a high priority area in the Levelling Up funding criteria and only one-fifth of the 525 bids across the country were successful.

"We will continue to fight for funding for projects we feel should get support. We've already secured a proposed county deal with Government, worth an extra £500 million over three decades.

"Ipswich and Lowestoft have secured up to £25 million from the Government's town fund."

Suffolk County Council's devolution deal was signed provisionally by Suffolk County Council leader Cllr Matthew Hicks and government minister Lee Rowley in December.

It would see the council gaining a directly-elected leader, £16 million of funding annually for 30 years and greater power over areas such as housing and adult education.

The deal requires council support and royal assent for the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill.

Cllr Ian Fisher, the only Conservative member of Ipswich Borough Council's executive, said: "I'm very disappointed about this decision. The system of bidding seems to be a lottery.

"I think decisions like this should be devolved, so they are taken closer to the bidding areas.

"However, I'm conscious that Ipswich got £25 million from the government's town fund and I'm confident we can get some of the sports facility improvements done.

"In terms of the Broomhill Lido bid in the ward I represent, most of the funding is already there and there are some other sources we can pursue to push it forward.

"When Ipswich Borough Council's Labour group announced the decision to spend so much money on improving sports facilities, I asked whether it was right to announce a grand scheme when so much depended on outside funding.

"I was reassured that there are lots of different pots of money available and asked: 'Can we afford to do nothing?'

"I'm a bit surprised that Councillor Ellesmere is now casting doubt on the future of some of the projects.

"We are desperate for new sports facilities in Ipswich."

On June 14, 2022, a new sports facilities strategy was brought to Ipswich Borough Council's cabinet.

The minutes of this meeting show Cllr Fisher raised concerns about the affordability of the proposals.

Cllr Bryony Rudkin, portfolio holder for communities and sport, responded that the council needed to be radical now to save money on future revenue expenditure and noted the opportunity to use Levelling Up funding.