Darlington Council opposition leader Jonathan Dulston has accused Chancellor Rachel Reeves of failing to "fly the flag for the North" after it emerged she has spent just two working days at the Treasury's Darlington Economic Campus since Labour took power.
He called Labour's approach "an own goal" given the party's traditional northern support base.
The Northern Echo revealed that Chancellor Rachel Reeves has spent a very limited time at the campus since the election victory last July, despite the fact that she is a northern MP.
Speaking to GB News, Jonathan Dulston said: "I can tell you that Rishi was absolutely committed to this project.
Jonathan Dulston said that he is "very disappointed" in Rachel Reeves
GB NEWS
"He was very visible, set the standard with his ministerial team at the Treasury, and reached out when he became Prime Minister.
"But we had visibility every single week with a minister, with feet on the ground in Darlington, not just on the campus, but talking to residents, talking to businesses, talking to constituencies.
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"And it actually goes a long way to get the government message across that people are listening.
"So this really is an own goal for Labour. When you think Labour traditionally were the party of the North, the Labour heartlands, the Red Wall all in the North, and now we've got our first woman Chancellor, probably the first Chancellor from Leeds, I would imagine, and she can't be bothered to drive five minutes up the road.
"I mean, it really is disappointing, she's based in Leeds.
"She is a northern MP. So if she's not flying the flag for places like Darlington, she's not flying the flag for the North, then we really have no hope under Labour."
This comes despite Reeves previously promising to use the town's Treasury offices "regularly" and urging ministers to do the same.
The first of these visits occurred just six days after Labour came into power, with the date of her second working day at the site unknown.
The revelation comes exactly four years after the 'Treasury North' project was first announced as part of efforts to move government decision-making away from London.
During her July visit, Reeves told reporters: "I'm on day six of the job, I'm already here. Not just in a flying visit, but working here, having meetings with colleagues and staff."
Rachel Reeves has only visited the campus twice since becoming Chancellor
PAShe added: "We want this to continue and it absolutely will."
The Chancellor emphasised her commitment to regional representation, stating: "I want ministers working not just from London but from Darlington. I think it's really important that we do that."
She also acknowledged the importance of spreading opportunity beyond the capital: "I know that talent in our country is spread throughout it, but for too long too many jobs have been focused in London and the South East."
The Darlington Economic Campus was established in 2021 as a key part of the previous government's "levelling up" agenda.
