Stranraer and Dalbeattie Receive Levelling Up Funds to Transform Both Towns

That the Parliament acknowledges the news that Dumfries and Galloway has been successful in obtaining a total of £17,698,660 from the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund towards reactivating Galloway; believes that the monies will transform redundant buildings and spaces in both Stranraer and Dalbeattie to drive footfall and spending, stimulate the visitor economy, and enhance quality of life by improving culture and leisure via investment in recreation and leisure infrastructure to target the growing active tourism market and support an enhanced quality of life to attract and retain residents, businesses and investors; welcomes the funding to create a Stranraer Water Sports Hub by regenerating the waterfront to increase accessibility and usage of the coast; understands that the new hub will deliver events, training, community activity and regatta facilities to benefit schools and youth groups in the area as well as attract more visitors; notes that the George Hotel, once an opulent icon in the town that has since fallen into disrepair, will be transformed into a multi-purpose hub, offering culture, recreation and 30-bed bunk house accommodation, art studios and exhibition space, as well as to facilitate programmes, including skills training, workshops and events for the local community, including school outreach programmes, and acknowledges the proposed transformation of the former Dalbeattie Primary School into the Rocks and Wheels project, which will deliver a community-led activity centre to offer physical activity facilities to the local community, as well as attract visitors to the town through a climbing wall, bouldering, pump track and affordable accommodation that will take advantage of its proximity to a wealth of outdoors visitor destinations with heavy visitor footfall, which previously lacked complementary facilities.