COMMUNITIES ARE TAKING THE LEAD
SCOTLAND has some of the finest towns in the world and as Minister for Local Government and Housing, I am determined to do all that I can do to ensure they continue to thrive.
I believe strongly that most of the solutions to towns and town centres rest with those who live and work there – by this I mean the local residents, businesses, community groups, and community planning partners.
Decisions affecting local communities should be made by those communities, it is they who hold the knowledge and understanding of how the place works and they are also the ones with the long term vested interest in getting things right.
It is our job in the Scottish Government to provide the supportive legislative framework and a “can-do” culture to encourage Scotland’s towns to rise to this challenge.
The Community Empowerment Act is a major step in our drive to give people a stronger voice in the decisions that matter to them. When it comes into force later this year it will give people more powers to take over land and buildings and have their voices heard.
And since we published the Town Centre Action Plan in 2013 I can see that significant progress has been made.
Business Improvement Districts are growing faster in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe, we now have over 225 Development Trusts and many of these have a clear focus on the town and town centre.
The Town Centre First Principle is encouraging the public sector to continue investing in town centres and help communities thrive.
We have supported the creation of Scotland’s Towns Partnership which is a central hub for towns across Scotland to connect and share knowledge and advice.
We’re also continuing to support the regeneration of our towns through exploring City Deals and regeneration programmes which will also benefit some of Scotland’s towns.
The City Deal blends funding from the Scottish and UK Governments and other partners to enhance long-term aspirations such as transport, digital connectivity, tourism, housing and business projects.
The devolved Growth Accelerator has been designed to encourage growth, create jobs and support businesses.
Towns in the Glasgow City Region, Aberdeen City Region and Inverness are already set to benefit from substantial funding from the Scottish and UK Government, and we are discussing City Region Deal proposals with Edinburgh and South East Scotland. Through this continued investment I hope that we can continue to help our town centres flourish.