Question reference: S6O-00132
- Asked by: Kaukab Stewart, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 1 September 2021
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Current status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 9 September 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on supporting the recovery of city centres through the City Centre Recovery taskforce.
Answer
The Scottish Government recognises the heavy impact of the pandemic on city centres.
We have supported many city centre businesses through our investment of more than £3.7bn in business support across Scotland.
The City Centre Recovery Task Force started its work in March this year, as a partnership between the Scottish Government and our seven cities. We kick-started that work with investment of a £2m City Centre Recovery Fund, which has already supported a range of projects including virtual cultural events, marketing campaigns and support for businesses to make more use of outdoor areas. That is in addition to our £2m Regional Recovery Fund, which cities also benefitted from.
The Task Force will allow our cities to put forward proposals that meet their own individual needs, and it present its recommendations for action this autumn. In the meantime, we continue to work with the cities individually as well as collectively. I will attend a meeting of Glasgow’s own City Centre Task Force on 27 October, following engagement by the Deputy First Minister who has attended previously.