Details of A75 upgrade funding not yet ‘fleshed out’ – Alister Jack

Details of funding for the A75 road upgrade have yet to be “fleshed out”, Scottish Secretary Alister Jack has said.

The project to improve the road, which links the ferry port at Cairnryan to the north of England, was mentioned in the Prime Minister’s Conservative party conference speech.

As one of a number of road projects benefitting from funding freed up by cancelling HS2, Rishi Sunak said it would “connect our Union with the A75 boosting links between Scotland and Northern Ireland”.

Speaking to the PA news agency during a trade visit to Vietnam, Mr Jack said the A75 went through his Dumfries and Galloway constituency.

He said: “I’m delighted there will be money for that.

“We’ve already agreed with the Scottish Government a feasibility project, the UK Government is funding £7 million on the upgrade of the road.

“And then there’s the £36bn that’s been freed up from the HS2 project and some of that £36bn will be apportioned to the A75.”

Asked how much this would be, he said: “No, we’ve got to thrash out the details.

“These are discussions I’ll be having in the very near future but we haven’t fleshed out the detail yet.”

He added: “Obviously I want to see it starting in the next few years, but it will take a number of years to complete.”

Following the Prime Minister’s statement, First Minister Humza Yousaf told reporters that he doubted the money would be forthcoming.

Mr Jack was in Hanoi to promote Scotch whisky exports and meet members of the Vietnamese government.

As well as whisky, the UK delegation discussed cooperation around Vietnam’s offshore wind power ambitions and a new partnership between the British University in Vietnam and Stirling University.

Exports of whisky have grown more than threefold since 2019 when a new trade deal was signed.

Mr Jack, who is the first Scottish Secretary to visit the southeast Asian country, said the spirit was “very, very popular” in Vietnam.