A REPORT in this week’s Echo revealed that the economy of County Durham is on a par with some of the poorest parts of Europe.

That can hardly come as a surprise when most of the UK’s infrastructure investment is spent on London and the South-East.

It is true that we need to do more ourselves as a region to attract jobs and investment. Since the demise of County Durham’s industrial base – manufacturing, engineering, coal mining and steel – significant efforts have been made to attract new employers to the area, led by Business Durham, the council’s inward investment body.

But Theresa May must also play her part to help the region to compete. However, over the next five years central government plans to spend just £300 per person to improve transport and business services, such as road and rail connections, across the North-East, whereas London will get £1,900 per head.

Total spending on the massive London Crossrail project alone will be £4.6bn over the next five years, and will exceed spending on all projects across the whole of the North.

This is at a time when public spending is being cut, forcing local authorities to ramp up council tax and cut essential services.

Unlike Surrey, we are not asking to be given special treatment – we just want a fair deal.

The time it takes to travel across our region on substandard roads and rail services is a key reason why our local economy struggles to compete with the best in Europe. Improving the infrastructure of the North-East which would stimulate the economy, and persuade more employers to come here, should take priority over transport projects, including Crossrail 2 and HS2, which will simply make it even more attractive to live, work and invest in London.

To build Mrs May’s “Better Britain”, we must focus on a stronger economy in the North.