Letter From Europe By Gary Titley, Labour Member of the European Parliament for the North-west of England MY summer postbag often contains letters from constituents about their holiday experiences.

One Boltonian, just back from Spain, expressed astonishment at all the billboards there, proclaiming a multitude of EU cash-funded projects. He asked: "Why not Bolton too?"

What he didn't realise was that Bolton has got, and continues to get, large injections of European money. The big difference between here and Spain is that they proudly boast about it; we don't!

Middlebrook is the most eye-catching example of Euro cash at work locally. Back in the early 1990s, I joined forces with Bolton Council to persuade the EU to provide £5 million for vital infrastructure work on, what was then, derelict wasteland.

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Now a complex has grown up that Boltonians can be proud of. It boasts the highly acclaimed Reebok Stadium and Bolton Arena, a business park and many other leisure and retail facilities,

But it is not just flagship projects. EU money has gone into schemes like restoration work on Smithills Hall and improvements to Farnworth town centre. Bolton Shopmobility Workshop, which I visited only last week, also relies heavily on EU financial backing.

And the cash keeps on coming. Bolton Council has just secured money from the European Social Fund to help women set up their own businesses. Crucially, some of it will go towards a free childcare facility -- relieving the childcare headache for many would-be working women.

Perhaps we in Britain should learn a lesson from the Spanish and trumpet local European success stories a bit more.