'We need more good jobs' - Blackpool South MP joins call for Prime Minister Keir Starmer to help coastal towns

Blackpool South MP Chris Webb is among Labour MPs calling on the government to take stronger action to reverse the decline of left-behind seaside towns.

Labour MPs representing coastal areas held a major event at Labour Party Conference to call on the Prime Minister to deliver a “London Challenge” for the coast to turn around the fortunes of seaside communities like Blackpool.

The London Challenge was a school improvement programme delivered by the last Labour government that transformed the educational outcomes of young people in London, delivering lasting changes to whole communities across the capital.

Chair of the coastal grouping of Labour MPs, Polly Billington MP, said at the event that young people in deprived seaside towns needed major government investment in post-16 training, apprenticeships and the delivery of good, secure non-graduate jobs.

She said the potential of coastal areas had long been squandered through Conservative-era cuts and a lack of government ambition, but that there were vast untapped economic opportunities in coastal areas that were currently being wasted.

The coastal group of MPs represent 66 Labour-held seats around the coast, around half of which were seized from the Conservatives in 2024. Chris Webb said the group was a vital tool for campaigning to improve the economy and living standards in Blackpool and other coastal towns.

Speaking after the Labour Party Conference Coastal PLP event, Polly Billington MP said: “Coastal communities face unique challenges – dire transport links, seasonal tourist economies, and travel-to-work areas that are, by definition, half the size of those inland.

“Yet they also hold enormous untapped potential – spectacular natural landscapes, world-class clean energy opportunities and under-served job markets full of ambitious young people waiting for better opportunities to come along.

“That’s why I’m delighted to be working with Chris Webb and all coastal Labour MPs to ensure our Labour government delivers a transformative agenda for our coastal towns.”

Chris Webb said: “For far too long, places like Blackpool have been left behind – written off by a Conservative government with no plan for good jobs, decent housing or opportunity. But by joining forces with MPs from coastal communities across the country, we’re showing that our voices are stronger together.

“We all share the same story of towns held back by neglect and underinvestment and we all share the same ambition — to build a fairer future where our young people don’t have to leave to get on.

“This campaign is about unlocking Blackpool’s potential and proving that coastal Britain deserves better.”

Key challenges for coastal communities include:

Higher levels of deprivation

Higher rates of preventable illnesses and lower life expectancy

Lower educational attainment and a higher rates of school absences

Lower pay, and an overreliance on seasonal tourism economies

Poor public transport and connectivity

Higher levels of exposure to the impacts of climate change

The crime rate is 12% higher on the coast, with 114 crimes per 1,000 people on the coast compared to 102 inland.

The proportion of economically inactive working-age people due to long-term sickness was 6.1% in urban, coastal constituencies, vs 4.6% in urban, inland constituencies

Brain drain is a significant problem. For example, only 19% of those who grow up in Grimsby get degrees, but as many leave, by age 27 just 12% of the same cohort residing in Grimsby are degree-educated. By contrast, 35% of those who grow up in London get degrees, but graduates moving to London means that by age 27, 44% of Londoners are graduates.