EAST Hampshire MP Damian Hinds has welcomed new dedicated funding from the Government to fill nearly a million potholes across the UK, including £1,488,000 for Hampshire.

That should be enough to fill some 28,075 potholes across the county.

He said: “Potholes remain a frustration for many residents, particularly those using our rural roads and lanes, and I hope this allocation will make a real difference in the months to come.”

The funding has been made available to councils as part of the Government’s £250million pothole action fund included in March’s budget, which will see more than four million potholes fixed by 2020/21.

A Hampshire County Council spokesman said: “We will be spending around £50million this year on highways maintenance, and welcome the extra £1.48million from the Government’s pothole action fund – the highest amount given to any local authority in the South East. As Hampshire’s highways service, we take a long-term asset-management approach to road maintenance, which has proved an effective use of resources to extend the life of roads – a successful strategy recognised by the Government.

“The extra money will be used on a variety of treatments such as resurfacing, surface dressing, high velocity patching and haunch repairs.”