Former government minister Hazel Blears has pledged her support for Cumbria at a meeting of the county's business leaders.

Mrs Blears, who was in Tony Blair's cabinet, was the keynote speaker at Britain's Energy Coast Business Cluster AGM.

The event, at Energus, Lillyhall, was attended by more than 100 representatives of the cluster's member companies.

Mrs Blears, who moved to Kendal about two years ago, told the audience: "Together we can put Cumbria on the map as a great place to live, work and bring up families. I hope I can play a small part in helping to create that future.

"I’m still learning about the tremendous assets of the region including the soaring beauty of the landscape, the energy and ingenuity of business leaders and the grit and resilience of Cumbrian people."

Mrs Blears is a non-executive director of Land & Lakes Ltd, owned by Brian Scowcroft.

It plans to create accommodation for the workforce who will build the proposed new nuclear plant at Moorside.

Mrs Blears said: "The traditional approach would be to build a temporary camp to house the workers which would be demolished when they leave with no legacy for the community whatsoever.

"Because of the imagination and the values of Brian and his team and those of Tom Samson and the team at NuGen there will be a very different approach at Moorside.

"Our plan is to build new high quality and energy efficient homes at Mirehouse in Whitehaven, close to the plant, where the workers can live in decent conditions with sports and leisure facilities which can be shared with the community.

"They can spend time and money in Whitehaven helping to regenerate the town centre – not like the wild west like I was told it was last time.

"When the workforce has left the homes can be turned into affordable housing for local people."

She told Ivan Baldwin, chairman of the business cluster, that if Lakes & Land was not already a member, she would recommend that it should be.

She said three meetings had taken place with UClan, the University of Cumbria, the University of Manchester and the University of Lancaster to work together to create a higher education campus at the site.

Mrs Blears said: "If you take into account Sellafield, the proposed Moorside plant and BAE Systems in Barrow, right the way down the west coast we have the potential to offer a unique centre for nuclear skills globally.

"If UClan can do it with medicine and their centre at West Lakes Science Park, we can do it for nuclear.

"Cumbrian people have their feet on the ground and they need to reach for the stars.

"It's all about raising people's aspirations and ambitions."

She said she was impressed with the business cluster and the breadth of its membership and she was proud to be

Also speaking at the event was Copeland MP Trudy Harrison.