“Justify huge spend on ‘Communities First’ or cancel it”
5 July 2010
Plaid AM calls for action as spending on scheme approaches quarter of a billion
A Plaid AM has called for a thorough evaluation of the benefits of the Communities First programme and its successor programme, Communities Next. Mid and West Wales representative Nerys Evans said that she was unconvinced that the programme had provided value for money even in its latest form and that it should be cancelled and replaced if it’s value to Wales’ economy and communities could not be clearly demonstrated.
Since it was introduced in 2001, Communities First has swallowed up nearly a quarter of a billion pounds worth of public funds in Wales (see notes for most recent costs). Ms Evans said that the Welsh public should be allowed to see for themselves how well that huge amount of money had been spent – and what benefits for Welsh communities had resulted from the programmes.
Plaid Cymru AM for Mid and West Wales, Nerys Evans said:
“Communities First is one government programme that should now be opened up to full public scrutiny. Ministers have resisted calls for a public enquiry into how the programme has been run, even though there have been damning reports and serious allegations made. The very least we should be able to expect is an honest appraisal of what outcomes have been achieved. While we’re all aware that there have been some positive results, there have also been some serious failures. That’s why a full evaluation needs to take place.
“Communities First has until May to prove that it is something that has been worth the huge amount of money that has been spent on it since it was first introduced in 2001. If it cannot be proven that this project is performing for our nation and our communities, then it should be cancelled as soon as possible. We clearly need to ensure that our communities are developed in a sustainable way – but schemes used to do that have to be effective, achieving real-world results that are value for money.
“We have had an initial taste of the financial hardship that is going to remain with us for the coming years – and the effects on efforts to regenerate our economy and our communities could be severe. The Conservative/Lib Dem Westminster government clearly hasn’t taken Wales’ needs into consideration during its early days so we have to ensure that every penny of Welsh government funding is targeted in the most effective way.”