Brian Whittle MSP is backing a plan for new Community Investment Deals to invest money directly into local communities.
The Scottish Conservatives have unveiled the proposals which would communities bid for funding of up to £25 million, from a £550 million pot, to create jobs and new opportunities for growth in their area. Mirroring the principles of deals like the newly signed Ayrshire Growth Deal, the funding from central government would aim to encourage further investment from councils and local businesses.
South Scotland MSP Brian says the Community Investment Deals would help create more jobs in towns and villages across Ayrshire and benefit communities recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“Communities across Scotland will be feeling the effects of Covid-19 for years to come. This new Community Investment Deals plan can help deliver a recovery for towns and villages and help them bounce back as strongly as cities like Glasgow.
I want to see more skilled job opportunities in towns like Kilmarnock and Cumnock so that people don’t have to move away to find work. Instead, we need to invest in our infrastructure and create a skilled workforce to attract businesses to Ayrshire.
Regional growth deals like the newly signed Ayrshire Growth Deal have shown what can be achieved when governments work together to energise regional economies. Community Investment Deals go a step further, taking an even more local approach.
Together with my colleagues in the Scottish Conservatives, my focus is firmly on helping Scotland’s communities - large and small - recover from the pandemic. That means investing and creating new skilled jobs, not more constitutional division and uncertainty.”
