Local MP Gemma Doyle and Jackie Baillie MSP have welcomed Scottish Labour’s Future Fund -; a new deal for young people in West Dunbartonshire.

The Future Fund will invest £1600 for every 18 or 19 year old in Dumbarton, Clydebank and the Vale of Leven who isn’t currently at university, college or in a modern apprenticeship.

The money will be available to invest in relevant training, setting up a business, or buying work tools.

The fund will also act as a powerful incentive to employers to take on young people as they will come with £1,600 of training support.

West Dunbartonshire MP Gemma Doyle said:

“The Future Fund will make a real difference to young people in Clydebank, Dumbarton and the Vale of Leven.  For too long our young people who aren’t in education or training have been ignored and let down by governments in Westminster and Holyrood.

“This means that whatever path young people take, Scottish Labour will support them, through free University tuition, increased college bursaries, the Future Fund for young people who are not in education or training, or with a guaranteed job with proper pay for those out of work.”

“Our young people don’t have another 5 years to waste under the Tories.”

Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie said:

“I know that many families in West Dunbartonshire are worried that their kids won’t have the chances they had when they were growing up. That the next generation’s horizons have become more narrow, more limited.

“Those in Higher Education get an average of £1600 spent on their fees. But what about the young people in West Dunbartonshire who don’t go to university, or who don’t get a place at college or an apprenticeship? They shouldn’t get left behind. Scottish Labour will invest in their future by giving them the support they need to buy work tools, learn to drive or anything else that could help them get on in life.”<