A £1 billion-plus deal for Glasgow which could create tens of thousands of jobs for Scotland's largest city has been formally signed.
The City Deal will fund major infrastructure projects in Glasgow and the surrounding region in a bid to boost the economy for the next 20 years.
The area's economy could benefit from a permanent boost worth £2.2 billion a year as a result while 15,000 jobs could be generated while construction work is taking place.
A further 28,000 permanent positions could be created once the building work is finished, with the deal also aiming to attract an additional £3.3 billion of private-sector investment.
The City Deal is being funded with £500 million from both the UK and Scottish governments while local authorities in the area will borrow a further £130 million.
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander, Holyrood local government minister Derek Mackay and Glasgow City Council leader Gordon Matheson have all now signed the deal.
Mr Matheson hailed it as "a momentous day for the Glasgow city region", adding: "The benefit this funding will bring to our infrastructure, economy and labour market will be felt for decades through tens of thousands of new jobs and increased competitiveness.
"I look forward to working with all of our partners to deliver this hugely important project in the years to come."
Mr Alexander said: "This is fantastic news for residents of the city and the Clyde Valley region, as it means those who know Glasgow best - the people who live and work here - can decide where this investment can benefit them and their families most."
Mr Mackay said: "As our largest city, Glasgow is central in driving economic growth.
"That is why the Scottish Government has agreed to invest £500 million in a city deal for Glasgow and the Clyde Valley that delivers significant benefits for the region and Scotland as a whole.
"The funding will create jobs and help cement Glasgow's position as one of Europe's leading cities with a vibrant, thriving economy."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article