Rishi Sunak ‘not embarrassed’ by levelling up money being awarded to his own seat

PM denies funding to lift up poor communities is being skewed towards affluent South East

Rishi Sunak rejected claims that the allocation of more than £2.1bn in levelling-up money was unfairly skewed towards affluent areas – including his own North Yorkshire constituency.

The prime minister is “absolutely not” embarrassed that the military town of Catterick Garrison, in his wealthy Richmond seat, has benefited from £19m of funding, Downing Street said.

Tory MPs in red-wall seats in the North of England and the Midlands shared their frustration over the latest funding announcement, after it emerged that the South East would be given more than the North East, Yorkshire and the West Midlands.