Conservative shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers visited Kidderminster today to see for herself just how important the proposed Stourport by-pass is. Theresa Villiers, whose family comes from Bewdley, was in town on the invitation of Mark Garnier. Mark has been leading calls for the Stourport relief road for over six years, championing this important infrastructure development.
Ms Villiers said: "I am very grateful for the opportunity to come a see for myself just how important this infrastructure development actually is. Mark has been a very strong advocate of this project for many years and has raised this issue with me on a number of occasions, as well as all my predecessors. Mark's tenacity on behalf of the people of Wyre Forest demonstrates clearly just how important it is for a constituency like Wyre Forest to have an MP with influence and support. Mark will make a first class MP here."
Mark explained the importance of the project. "There are three reasons why this is a vital project for our community. Firstly, it is about relieving congestion in Stourport. Stourport is the main access into Wyre Forest from the south and south west and it jams up far too easily. For business to survive in Stourport, we need to get people who want to be in Stourport into the town easily, and people who want to be somewhere else out of the town quickly. Secondly, we need to be supporting local businesses in the wider Wyre Forest, who need to get their staff into work on time, and their finished products out of factory gates with ease. This also applies with our tourist industry, who need to see visitors moving easily around the district.
"But it's the last reason that for me is the 'deal-clincher'. We have nearly 100 acres of unused prime industrial site on the Stourport Road. Yet without the necessary infrastructure in place, the economic case for bringing businesses to the area is weaker. This by-pass is absolutely vital for the economic development of the local area, and to bring much needed jobs.
"The good news is that my Conservative colleagues in Westminster understand this and are supportive of it. The bad news is that Gordon Brown has blown all the country's money and there is none left for investment. No one is pretending that getting this project underway will not be a challenge under the current economic climate, but unless Wyre Forest has an MP with influence fighting hard for this investment, it will never happen."