§ Mr. CoakerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what steps he is taking to ensure small pockets of deprivation outside cities receive Government support for regeneration. [136526]
§ Ms Beverley HughesThe Government are committed to tackling deprivation and main spending programmes, which are seen as the key for achieving the greatest impact, have been set new targets through the Spending Review 2000, so that the outcomes they achieve in deprived areas improve. They have also received substantial increases from the Spending Review for the next three years. The Action Plan for implementing the Neighbourhood Renewal strategy, which will be published shortly, will set out further proposals for tackling deprivation wherever it occurs, in line with our objective of narrowing the gap between deprived areas and the rest of the country. The Neighbourhood Renewal Unit will take this forward cross-departmentally.