The Herald:

HELLO and welcome to the AM Business Briefing, as it is revealed details of a new £150 million fund aimed at helping smaller businesses in Scotland is to be included in Rishi Sunak's Budget.

The Chancellor is to set out his second Budget of the year on Wednesday, with the Tory promising he will focus on "looking to the future and building a stronger economy for the British people".

While his previous two budgets were heavily focused on dealing with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, rebuilding is now said to be at the centre of the Chancellor's efforts.

The new £150 million fund to help thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises in Scotland is expected to be included in his announcements.

The fund, to be delivered through the British Business Bank, will be similar to existing schemes in England and Northern Ireland, which have provided investment and loans for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Details on how businesses in Scotland can access the fund will be outlined in due course.

Also today, a Scottish housebuilder has unveiled a new development, Glasgow company has unveiled its first acquisition, and, in Business Voices, Russell Borthwick of the Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce tells how the North East is well-placed to reshape world energy provision.

76 new homes to launch this week

Miller Homes has announced the launch of its third development in West Dunbartonshire, at Garshake Gardens.

The Dumbarton development, which is set to launch on Saturday 30 October 2021, follows on from the "enormous successes" of Miller Homes’ now completed Braidfields development and Millerbank development which launched earlier this year in nearby Clydebank.

Garshake Gardens will comprise of 76 three and four-bedroom homes in a mix of terrace, detached and semi-detached styles. House styles include the three-bedroom Halston and Carlton along with the four-bedroom Blackwood and Lockwood styles. An Oakwood showhome will also launch early next year, providing plenty of inspiration for prospective purchasers.

Presenting an "excellent opportunity for families to secure a flexible family home in a convenient location", Garshake Gardens is ideally located just a short distance from Dumbarton’s town centre, on Garshake Road.

The development is just minutes from the A82, with easy access to Glasgow’s city centre and West End, and is also well placed for Dumbarton Central train station, which offers direct routes into Glasgow.

Louise Caldwell, sales director for Miller Homes Scotland West, said: “Miller Homes is delighted to announce the launch of Garshake Gardens, our third development in West Dunbartonshire in recent years. Our Braidfields and Millerbank developments have been exceptionally popular amongst buyers. We anticipate that Garshake Gardens will be no different due to its excellent location, superb local amenities, and connectivity to Glasgow.

“We have seen a strong interest in Garshake Gardens, and with such high demand for new homes, we would encourage prospective buyers to register their interest to avoid disappointment.” 

Homes will be available to reserve online from 9am on Saturday 30 October.

Glasgow software firm buys Australian company

Altia, which provides specialist intelligence and investigation software for government and law enforcement agencies across the UK, Canada and Australia, has unveiled its first-ever acquisition.

Altia has bought Australian company VeriSaas, a field-intelligence and evidence-collection software business. 

Russell Borthwick: Aberdeen in vanguard of energy revolution

COP26 will focus on the global imperative that is climate change. Setting targets is fine, but how will they be achieved?

The collective expertise, innovation and skills built up in oil and gas during the last 60 years across operators, supply chain, universities, agencies and other partners means Aberdeen is uniquely placed to be at the heart of the energy transition.

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