Wigan Council's recent Levelling Up Fund bid for Leigh has been rejected.
This comes after the consultation run by Wigan Council showed that the majority of locals rejected the proposals, with 60% of Leigh residents refusing to support the Council's plan for the town centre in the consultation, with many expressing the view that the plans were inadequate.
Last year, Wigan Council proposed to bid for £11.5 million for Leigh town centre, compared to a £35 million bid the council submitted for Haigh Hall in Wigan, adding to the £20 million from the Levelling Up Fund with another £15 million from other sources.
Leigh MP, James Grundy has called for the next round of bidding for the Levelling Up Fund to be at least the full basic £20 million available from the Government.
Commenting, James Grundy MP said:
"The Leigh Levelling Up Fund bid was always inadequate and doomed to fail, as I said at the time it was put forward. It is clear that, as usual, Wigan Council focussed their efforts on securing a successful bid for Wigan alone.
"Wigan Council proposed to bid for just £11.5 million for the whole of Leigh town centre, as opposed to the bid for £35 million the council submitted just to restore a single building in Wigan, Haigh Hall.
"I urge the Council to get back around the table with myself and other interested local residents and business groups in Leigh, and work with us to put together a successful Levelling Up Fund bid for our community.
"Leigh needs to have the same opportunity to Level Up as Wigan, and we deserve nothing less."