GREENOCK has kept its promised £20 million share of a fund set up to breathe new life into towns across the country in the UK Government's autumn budget.

Concerns had been raised that the funding could be axed as the new Labour government set out to tackle a major hole in the country's finances.

But Chancellor Rachel Reeves made no mention of scrapping the funding in her Budget speech in the House of Commons.

Inverclyde's Labour MP, Martin McCluskey, threw his weight behind Ms Reeves' spending plans - but one of his SNP rivals claimed the financial plan does not go far enough.

And Stuart McMillan complained that WASPI campaigners, in Inverclyde and beyond, had been ignored in Ms Reeves' speech.

The Chancellor announced tax rises worth £40bn a year as she increased government borrowing and spending to ‘rebuild Britain’.

READ MORE: Key points from the 2024 Autumn Budget

Mr McCluskey, the MP for Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West, told the Telegraph that he believed the budget fulfilled commitments that he and other Scottish Labour MPs made during the election.  

He said: “Labour made it clear there would be no return to austerity under Labour, and today’s Budget makes good on that promise.

(Image: Newsquest)

“Decisions made about public services in the rest of the UK will mean an extra £3.4bn for the Scottish Government.

“They also mean we can retain the £20 million towns fund for Greenock - despite the fact that the previous government didn’t properly fund these commitments.

“This is a significant, real terms increase to Scotland’s block grant.

“But since the SNP came to power in 2007, they have wasted over £5bn of taxpayers’ money on pet projects, failed industrial interventions and incompetence – from costly agency spend in the NHS to overspend infrastructure projects and ferries that don’t sail.

“With increased funding delivered, it is now for the SNP to set out their spending plans.

“I will be fighting tooth and nail to ensure the Scottish Government spend this money wisely to fix and fund our public services and deliver on the priorities of our community.”

The Budget also included commitments such as increasing the minimum wage, retaining a freeze on fuel duty for another year, increase capital gains tax and hike employers’ national insurance contributions.

Mr McMillan, the SNP MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, said that while he accepted the Labour Government had been left in a difficult position by the last government, he wanted to see more from the budget.

He added: “There is no denying that the Labour Government have inherited a hugely challenging financial situation thanks to over a decade of Tory economic mismanagement at Westminster.

(Image: Newsquest) “However, taking money away from pensioners and keeping the two-child cap are two examples of how they’ve already decided to make life harder for some of the most vulnerable people in society.

“The SNP called on Labour to end austerity with their first UK Budget in 15 years, and while there are some welcome announcements today, like the increase in the minimum wage, it does not go far enough.

“WASPI Women have once again been forgotten about – despite Labour claiming to want to do right by them."

The MSP also raised concerns that plans to increase employer national insurance contributions would be a 'hammer blow' for councils, health boards and other public bodies and would lead to a reduction in services. 

He added: “More in-depth analysis will take place in the coming days, but my initial thoughts are that Labour are maintaining the austerity brought about by their Conservative pals. The only change is the party delivering the cuts.”

Inverclyde Council leader Stephen McCabe said he was pleased to see that the Chancellor had provided ‘significant extra funding’ to the Scottish Government.

He added: “I hope the Scottish Government will pass a fair share of that extra funding onto councils in the forthcoming Scottish budget to assist with the huge financial challenges we are facing as a result of many years of cuts and council tax freezes."