Perth lodges bid to become 'Fair City' again

PERTH has officially staked its claim to become Scotland's seventh city, in a competition set up to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee next year.

Provost of Perth and Kinross Dr John Hulbert and local MP Pete Wishart yesterday delivered a 50-page document to the Cabinet Office in London, outlining the case for city status being restored. The "Fair City" lost its status in 1975 after local government reorganisation.

The application document says the royal burgh, the first capital of Scotland, is a "truly dynamic international city" and should take its place alongside Scotland's six existing cities - Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee, Stirling and Inverness.

Mr Hulbert said: "This detailed document sets out clearly why we feel this civic honour should once again be ours, giving a wealth of information which I am sure will be food for thought."

Some 19 towns across the UK are bidding to be named a city by the Queen, and the winner is expected to be announced early in 2012.