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Stranraer Waterfront Battle of Words Continues

THE BITTER battle of words over the Stranraer Waterfront funding fall-out continued this week.

SNP South of Scotland MSP Alasdair Morgan and Labour Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown were at loggerheads again.

Mr Morgan called on Labour politicians and Dumfries and Galloway Council to explain accusations of the waterfront project being “downgraded” from a national to local development.

His request follows a statement by Stewart Stevenson, the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure, who said there was no such thing as a "National Development", because a national planning framework had not been finalised and approved. Mr Morgan said:

"This really exposes the damaging actions of local Labour and the misleading, scaremongering approach they have taken from the start.

"To state, as Labour has done repeatedly, that the Stranraer waterfront regeneration has been downgraded is either wilfully inaccurate or demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of the process."

He has also written to the council to ask them to change an article on their website stating that the project had been downgraded.

But Mr Brown hit back saying Mr Morgan was in "complete denial" over what the Government had done to the project. He said:

"The SNP know only too well, as do the people of Stranraer and local businesses, that the scheme was previously deemed to be of national significance.

"It's a great shame that Mr Morgan treats local people with such contempt by suggesting otherwise."

He said Mr Morgan should now be making the case to SNP ministers that the £400,000 earmarked for every regeneration project in the region was "woefully pathetic" and should be much greater.