The Government has announced it will be giving out a share of more than £3million to local authorities that have ports and will be affected by Brexit – but Thurrock is not on the list.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced last week that a pot of money amounting to £3.14million will be shared between 19 authorities that have a major port to prepare for Brexit.

They will each receive £136,362 by the end of April but Thurrock will not be one of the beneficiaries, despite being home to the Port of Tilbury which is regarded as the principal port for London.

A Thurrock Council spokesperson said: “Thurrock Council is disappointed by this announcement. The council will be writing to MHCLG to understand the criteria on which the decision has been based and request that it is revisited in light of the national importance of the three Thurrock based ports.”

Among the authorities set to receive the funding are Dover, Folkestone and Hythe, Thanet, Hull, Portsmouth, Crawley and Southampton.

Communities Secretary James Brokenshire said: “Local authorities have a critical role to play in making a success of Brexit.

“I am acutely aware a greater burden could be placed on the areas surrounding our ports. I have announced how we are allocating £3.14 million to those areas considered to be under the greatest pressure from Brexit.

“I will continue to take the situation under review, working closely with local leaders to ensure they are prepared to respond to Brexit.”

The extra money will be in addition to a share of the £56.5million that the Government has already promised to all local authorities.

The announcement was made on the same day that the Secretary of State for Transport approved a new multimillion-pound terminal at the Port of Tilbury, named Tilbury2.

It is expected to create 8,500 jobs in Thurrock over the next ten to 15 years and will be able to cope with growing demand for building materials, car imports and exports, and increase ferry traffic to carry consumer goods, food and drink and steel between Europe and the UK.

It is expected to be operational by Spring 2020.