SNP representatives in Moray have criticised the UK Labour Government after the North of Scotland was left out of the latest Westminster funding round aimed at boosting regional economic growth.
The criticism follows an announcement that £140 million will be allocated to five Scottish Local Region Growth Funds, with no local authority north of Dundee included in the package.
Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey MP Graham Leadbitter described the funding as pitiful and accused Westminster of continuing to treat Moray and the wider north as an afterthought.
“Labour expects people in Scotland to be satisfied with this pathetic level of investment after decades of underfunding, but once again they’ve ignored this part of the country entirely.
“If they’re going to throw pitiful sums at us in an attempt to claim their austerity project is over they could at least target the whole of Scotland, but instead Moray and the North of Scotland is once again treated as an afterthought to Westminster.
“Communities in Scotland have suffered far too much at the hands of uninterested Westminster governments over the years and deserve proper support and investment.
“It’s becoming increasingly clear that the only way that can be directed at communities like this one is with independence.”
Moray MSP Richard Lochhead also criticised the distribution of the funding and the approach taken by the UK Government.
“The fact that no local authority north of Dundee is set to benefit from this fund is disgraceful.
“It shows very clearly that Moray and economic growth in our region is not a priority for this UK Government.
“And of course, UK Governments of all stripes must stop trying to bypass the Scottish Parliament and should allow the democratically elected Government in Scotland to decide how best to use these funds for the benefit of communities right across Scotland, including here in Moray.”
The funding announcement has renewed wider concerns about regional imbalance and long term underinvestment in the north of the country, with critics arguing that decisions taken at Westminster continue to overlook rural and coastal communities.
SNP figures say the latest round underlines the need for greater control over investment decisions affecting Scotland’s economy, particularly in areas that have faced years of constrained budgets and limited growth support.
