On 30th April 2009 the Scottish Government announced details of its £60m of funding to assist town centre regeneration across Scotland.

As Scotland’s largest town, Paisley deserves to be the biggest beneficiary of this long delayed fund. If Paisley’s full bid is successful the town centre will receive an additional £3.7m investment. This much needed investment would help enhance Paisley’s image, attract people and businesses to the area, boost community pride and support the local economy.

I have drafted a short submission to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, John Swinney, making the case for Paisley to receive its fair share of the £60m fund.

Click here to view a copy of my submission

I urge you to co-sign the submission and have the opportunity to leave a short comment expressing your support.

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CARRY A KNIFE AND GO TO JAIL

Labour Members of the Scottish Parliament are calling on the Scottish Government to support mandatory minimum sentences for those who illegally carry or use knives in an attack. Recent statistics show that less than a third of those convicted of weapons offences actually went to prison. Mandatory sentences could help. Everyone in support of this proposal is encouraged to sign Wendy’s knife crime petition.

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- The SNP are urged by to support school ad ban –

Local MSP Wendy Alexander is pushing proposals for a ban on billboards advertising alcohol near schools and a mandatory code of practice for retailers who sell alcohol.

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- Delays in receiving results must be tackled -

Wendy Alexander MSP has today written to Nicola Sturgeon Cabinet Secretary of Health concerning delays in local testing procedures.

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- St Andrew’s pupils visits Wendy in the Scottish Parliament -

St Andrew’s Academy in Paisley has received the prestigious Green Flag Award for Eco Schools. The school already has the Bronze and Silver Eco awards with the Green Flag being their latest achievement. St Andrew’s goes one step further being the only mainstream secondary school in Renfrewshire as well as East Renfrewshire to receive this noble award.

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Wendy Alexander MSP has joined the world’s most comprehensive study into the causes of breast cancer – the Breakthrough Generations Study. The study will follow 100,000 women for the next 40 years, providing information about lifestyle, environmental, genetic and hormonal factors which will help identify the causes of breast cancer.

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- Health Board bows to local pressure after confusion and delay -

The Health Board has backed down reinstating lab testing of H1N1 virus due to sustained local pressure. As of Friday, patients with symptoms of H1N1 will be referred for testing. (more…)

- Wendy reasserts her call for mandatory sentences for knife crime -

70% of criminals convicted for handling an offensive weapon in 2007/08 in Strathclyde did not get sent to jail. Wendy has stepped up her knife crime campaign by releasing shocking figures which show how many criminals caught with an offensive weapon are given a community sentence or fine, rather than a jail sentence.

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I WRITE this in the Donald Dewar library of the Scottish Parliament. The symbolism appealed. Because as the sound and fury of elections, expenses, political coups and counter coups fade – what will endure?

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- Renfrewshire bids for share of £60m Town Centre Regeneration Fund -

After winning a long-running battle for a government fund to help decaying town centres, Wendy Alexander and her Labour colleagues have launched a campaign to demand Paisley gets it fair share of the cash from the Scottish Government.

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