COMMITMENT to a £345m deal for the Borderlands Partnership has been welcomed as a ‘game changer’.

The multi-million-pound funding stream, announced in the Spring Statement, comes just six months after the Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal proposal was presented to the UK and Scottish Governments.

The partnership is a unique collaboration that brings together the five cross-border local authorities – Carlisle City Council, Cumbria County Council, Dumfries and Galloway Council, Northumberland County Council and Scottish Borders Council – to deliver benefits across the area.

The funding will mean thousands of new job opportunities, millions of extra tourists to the area, improved digital connectivity and unlocking investment in towns across the region generating a predicted £1.3bn return on the Government’s investment.

Detailed talks will now continue to establish the exact level of funding allocated to various schemes.

A Borderlands Partnership spokesman said: “Now we know how much we’re getting overall, we can start planning the detail to be able to deliver a range of projects across the region, all designed to boost productivity and to achieve inclusive growth.

“What is already clear is that the long-term benefits will reach all parts of the Borderlands.”