MP says investment, jobs and a campaign on wages is needed
South Lakes MP Tim Farron has said that we must 're-double our efforts' and campaign for more well paid jobs. Tim said that together with his work on health and affordable housing, bringing jobs and investment is one of his top priorities.
According to statistics from Paycheck and the Cumbria Statistical Observatory, the average household income in Cumbria was £25,104 in 2014. This was lower than the national average of £28,466.
In South Lakeland specifically, the average income is £26,957, £1509 lower than the national average. The 25th percentile income (the lowest quarter of earners) is just £14,752, which is £359 lower than the national average.
Tim has pointed to some of the work that the Liberal Democrats in Government have done which help those on lower incomes. 22,010 people in Cumbria, including 3,860 people in South Lakeland will be lifted out of paying tax altogether by April 2015. A further 200,200 people in Cumbria, including 41,800 people in South Lakeland, will have received a £800 cut in their income tax bill.
Tim is working hard to bring more well paid jobs to the local area and a major part of that is by improving our local skills base. Since 2010 his campaign to bring apprenticeships to the South Lakes has meant that an extra 2,800 apprenticeships have been created. He has also welcomed the news that Cumbria County Council are due to become a Living Wage employer.
Tim said: "Bringing more jobs and apprenticeships to our area is very important to me. I am working incredibly hard to bring new investment to our area. I look at the engineering hub at Kendal College or my visits to businesses to meet apprentices and I can see the work that we do locally is making a difference.
"But our area faces a mix of low wages and high house prices and this is why I am keen to work with others to bring in the Living Wage, starting with the public sector taking the lead."