MSP Brian Whittle has welcomed confirmation from the UK Government that they will be investing £20 million in Kilmarnock over the next decade.

The town was named among seven Scottish locations including Irvine to receive the latest round of levelling up funding.

The funding forms part of a £1.1billion levelling up investment covering 55 towns across the UK, with the seven Scottish towns receiving funding selected using the Levelling Up Needs Index.

This considers metrics covering skills, pay, productivity and health alongside the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation.

The initiative aims to turn around the fortunes of town-centres across the UK, many of which have been in decline.

In Kilmarnock, that could include improving transport links, greater efforts to tackle anti-social behaviour, supporting community projects and boosting the local economy.

The next step for Kilmarnock will see the creation of a Towns Board, bringing together community leaders, businesses, public sector agencies, cultural organisations, sports clubs and other community groups to decide where and how the money allocated to the area is spent.

As he welcomed the announcement, Mr Whittle has encouraged the people of Kilmarnock to grasp the opportunity with both hands.

The Scottish Conservatives MSP for South Scotland said: “This £20 million investment in Kilmarnock by the UK Government over the next decade is a huge vote of confidence in the town and its communities.

"All too often, decisions about funding are made centrally with a one-size-fits-all approach that just doesn’t work on the ground.

"With this funding, the UK Government are recognising that trusting local people to make the right decisions for their community can bring much better results.

"There’s already a lot of great work happening in Kilmarnock, not least the £22 million in UK Levelling Up funding for the Palace Theatre redevelopment, and this funding can help that go even further.

"At a time when people across the UK are facing big economic challenges, this funding can make a real difference to everything from transport links to keeping communities safe to creating new opportunities for children and young people.

"I know in Kilmarnock will grasp this opportunity with both hands and support the Towns Board as it brings together a whole range of people from the community to decide how best to use this money."