Scots councils to lose out on £46m of EU funds after Brexit

Councils in Scotland are poised to lose out on £46 million a year in EU cash for vital community  projects, it has emerged.

Tavish Scott says the figures show the "material threat" posed by Brexit

Road building projects and youth employment schemes are among the projects. The figures have been unveiled by the Scottish Liberal Democrats in a Freedom of Information request. In the past four years over £127 million has been assigned to Scots councils from EU sources.“These figures reveal just how beneficial EU funding has been for council projects and the material threat posed by the UK’s departure from the EU,” said Liberal Democrat Europe spokesman Tavish Scott. “The UK and Scottish Governments must now explain how disruption to these projects will be minimised and the loss of funding mitigated, especially in highland and island areas they have too often been only too happy to let lag behind.“Liberal Democrats won’t accept a blank cheque Brexit and the UK Government’s cavalier approach to dealing with Europe. Voting for departure is not the same as voting for a destination. That is why we will vote against Article 50 being triggered without a guarantee of a referendum on the terms of our exit.”In 2015/16, EU funding to Scots councils £46 million. This covered youth employment services in Aberdeenshire, road schemes in the Highlands & Islands, small business support in North Ayrshire an anti-poverty programmes in Fife.John Edward, Scotland Director of Open Britain: “It’s clear that losing EU funding will have a serious and damaging impact on communities the length and breadth of Scotland. “During the campaign, Vote Leave promised that all EU funding pledged until 2020 would be matched by the UK Government in the event of Brexit. The Government needs to keep that promise now to protect Scotland’s communities.”