Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to encourage economic development in rural areas within English metropolitan counties.

In August, the Secretary of State launched the Government’s Rural Productivity Plan. This sets out a series of measures to help rural communities and businesses reach their full potential and contribute to increasing national productivity.

By investing in education and skills, increasing wages, improving infrastructure and connectivity, and simplifying planning laws for rural businesses and communities, this will help create thriving rural areas where generations of families can open and expand their businesses, buy a home and educate their children at first class schools.