Mary Creagh MP // Tel: 01924 386124 // Email: mary@marycreagh.co.uk // 20-22 Cheapside, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, WF1 2TF

Defra "out of touch on the rural economy"

The Government department charged with looking after the environment has spent nearly £70m making people redundant – at the same time as recruiting another 500 staff.

Nearly 1,800 people have left the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and its agencies since the General Election, at a cost of £69.9m in redundancy payments.

The revelation has led Labour to claim the Government is “out of touch with the rural economy” and that the money could have been better spent on flood defences or jobs for young people.

Shadow Environment Secretary Mary Creagh said “Defra Ministers have spent £70m on making people redundant since the General Election, money that could have been spent building flood defences or creating jobs for young people to improve the natural environment. The Tories have a plan for cuts, but no plan for the environment.”