Conservative MS and Labour MP clash over £10m pulled from Venue Cymru

Richard Evans, local democracy reporter

A row over the £10m pulled from Venue Cymru is ongoing between Llandudno’s Conservative MS and Labour MP.

Last week, Aberconwy’s Conservative MS, Janet Finch-Saunders and the area’s Labour MP, Claire Hughes, clashed over the UK Government pulling £10m of funding promised to Venue Cymru.

Aberconwy MS Janet Finch-Saunders criticised the UK Labour Government for revealing that Venue Cymru was unlikely to receive the £10m UK Government Levelling-Up Fund, as promised by the previous Tory regime.

Venue Cymru investment

The money was set to refurbish the theatre and facilitate the council’s controversial plans to close Llandudno Library and move it to Venue Cymru.

With the money now unlikely to emerge – though UK Government is yet to finalise cancelling the fund – Mrs Finch-Saunders has slammed Labour, claiming the move was not included in their election manifesto.

Claire Hughes, Labour’s new MP for Bangor Aberconwy, criticised Mrs Finch-Saunders stance: “In the case of the Venue Cymru project, a key part of this funding was to enable Llandudno Library to be moved to Venue Cymru, something which the Conservative AM for Aberconwy, Janet Finch Saunders MS, was very vocal in opposing.”

“It would be rather surprising therefore if she would suddenly be in favour of the project going ahead given her campaign against it.”

Conservative response

Mrs Finch-Saunders has since responded: “The Labour MP has stated that a key part of the funding for the Venue Cymru project was to enable Llandudno Library to be moved to Venue Cymru. That is factually incorrect.”

She continued: “As Sarah Ecob, Conwy ’s Head of Economy and Culture noted in a letter to me dated 27/08/2024, ‘We submitted a Levelling-Up bid to the UK Government in 2022 which included improvements to the Venue Cymru technical infrastructure, new auditorium seating, and an extension to the existing foyer to create a culture hub. The application was produced in a very short timescale due to the changing requirements and information about the Levelling Up funding scheme at the time.”

Ms Ecob supposedly wrote: “The offer of a £10 million investment was announced in the March 2024 budget and was a complete surprise to us’.”

Mrs Finch Saunders said: “Clearly, moving the library was not part of the bid in 2022. It is only under the current Conwy First, Labour, and Plaid Cymru cabinet that plans to potentially use UK Government money to move the library have been considered.”

“I have consistently opposed Labour and Plaid Cymru’s idea of moving the library and tourist information centre as part of the larger project which would be funded by the UK Government. That money is much better spent, as originally intended, on the theatre’s technical infrastructure and new auditorium seating.”