Council to decide how to spend £20m Levelling Up funding
A decision on how Argyll and Bute Council will spend its £20 million Levelling Up funding is due to be made “in the very near future”, councillors have said.
Fears were expressed at a meeting that no clarity had emerged from the authority on plans to spend the cash injection from the UK Government, which was announced in November.
But the council’s policy and resources committee is expected to rule on where the funding will go, with possible projects currently being considered.
The discussion took place at a meeting of the council’s Helensburgh and Lomond Area Committee on Tuesday March 12.
Sarah Davies, of Helensburgh Community Council, said: “At the last meeting of the area committee, I asked about the allocation of £20 million from the Westminster Government’s Levelling Up Fund.
“I was assured that the council would be looking into this, but I have had no further updates on this, despite the very public budget discussions.
“When will this money be allocated, who will make the decision, and when will residents be consulted on this?
“Might I suggest that projects which would welcome the money are the pier regeneration, the plan to buy the Tower Cinema and Arts Centre, and developing the waterfront into a leisure area with a skatepark and coach parking?
“I am also very concerned, given that this is a general election year, that if the money is not spent, it will be lost.”
Committee chairperson, Helensburgh and Lomond South Conservative Councillor Gemma Penfold, said: “I believe that will be considered by the policy and resources committee, which we do not have a date for yet.”
Ms Davies responded: “This is five months ago. In that time, Inverclyde Council has received money which is currently being spent.”
Helensburgh Central Conservative Councillor Gary
Mulvaney said: “That money is from the previous round of Levelling Up funding, which Argyll and Bute actually bid for, but we did not succeed.
“The money you are referring to was announced by Michael Gove when he was communities secretary. West Dunbartonshire was given money as well.
“Projects are to be delivered in a very short timescale and will go to the policy and resources committee in the very near future.
“But it is a UK Government initiative, we are working to their criteria and we did not succeed last time because we had too many different projects with different strands. We need to focus on one or two things this time around.”
The policy and resources committee is next due to meet on Thursday May 9, although it is possible a special meeting could be called before then.