Workington MP Sue Hayman has used a debate in the House of Commons to claim that public sector funding cuts are hitting Cumbria's rural communities.

Labour's Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Mrs Hayman spoke during a debate on the issue of rural crime and the delivery of public services in rural areas.

She highlighted the financial challenges facing Cumbria County Council and spoke of how Britain’s rural communities are struggling under increasing pressures and cuts to their local public services and amenities.

"What we have heard today can leave us in no doubt that the Tory Government have simply neglected Britain’s rural communities and have taken so many of our rural constituencies for granted," she told fellow MPs.

"I represent the Cumbrian seat of Workington, and I join the hon. Member for Copeland [Trudy Harrison] in supporting the important work that our constabulary and Police and Crime Commissioner do. I thank her for raising that.

"The constituency I live in covers a huge rural area of the northern Lake District, including the national park, which is now a world heritage site, and the Solway Plain area of outstanding natural beauty. So I am acutely aware of the issues facing people in our small towns, villages and hamlets—I am one of those people.

“Anyone with a rural constituency knows just how difficult the delivery of high-quality public services is in our communities and how much more expensive they are to deliver. Our local authorities are under intense funding pressures. My local authority, Cumbria County Council, is set to have to make a colossal £33 million in savings over the next 12 months, because of the widespread uncertainty it is facing over its funding for the future.

"That is £33 million of cuts to vital public services that the authority is being forced into, and we know that that is because funding from central Government has been slashed. Expecting a county such as Cumbria to get its funding from business rates is simply not realistic, as we do not have the necessary level of business or population.

"It is really important that rural communities have proper funding and that the Government understand that not all formulas work for all areas.

“The people set to suffer the most from the cuts to local services are our young people, our elderly, adults who are more vulnerable—those with disabilities—and the people who live in our most rural areas.

"That is because of the extra cost of delivering to those communities. Unfortunately, it seems that things are set to get even more difficult in Cumbria, as the council also has to find a way to save £70 million by 2022, and that is in addition to the £214 million it has reduced spending by since 2011."

Mrs Hayman accused the Government of failing to properly fund the fight against wildlife crime.

"A recent wildlife charity study found a worrying lack of prosecutions for wildlife crimes," she said.

"Almost 1,300 incidents were recorded in just one year, but the records show that there were only 22 prosecutions or convictions. Worryingly, the report also says that the charities’ data is believed to be more comprehensive than Home Office crime statistics, but is still likely to be only the “tip of the iceberg”.

"It calls on the Government to follow Scotland’s lead. I understand that, in Scotland, there are specific police recording codes that the police use for wildlife crime. I ask the Minister to commit to that.”

David Rutley, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, defended the Government's record on funding police services, saying that DEFRA and the Home Office had jointly fund the National Wildlife Crime Unit with £301,000 a year for the next two years

He said: "The Government are committed to bringing sustainable growth to the rural economy, and to supporting and strengthening communities. We have talked a lot about crime...

Around 12 million people—19% of the UK population—live in rural areas.

"Despite some of the challenges we have talked about today, statistics show that most people feel that our rural towns and villages are great places in which to live and work. The fundamental features of rural areas—being more geographically dispersed and more sparsely populated than urban areas—are the key attractions of the UK’s rural towns and villages.

"We recognise, however, that distance, sparsity and demography can affect the delivery of important services. Rural areas are further away from the main economic centres and can suffer from poorer access to services and facilities that are commonplace in urban areas.

"That is why the Government have made a commitment to rural-proof all policies.

"The 2015 spending review protected overall police funding in real terms.

"We recognise that we need to respond to changing demands on the police. That is why new flexibility has been given to police and crime commissioners so they can raise the income required to tackle specific local challenges. I am pleased that we have increased the overall investment in policing from £11.9 billion in 2015-16 to £13 billion in this financial year.