Cathie wrote to the Scottish Government when Cumbernauld was denied funding in the first round of funding in August 2009, asking that the bid be considered favourably in the next round.

Cathie said:

"This is a disgraceful decision. Once again Cumbernauld Town Centre is being overlooked, even though it had a strong bid, something that the government acknowledged.

"I have a long commitment to town centre regeneration and the money now being made available is a direct result of the commitments won by Labour in last year's budget. This money however is not being awarded to our area.

"I am deeply concerned that the cash is being allocated not on merit, but has instead been skewed towards areas controlled by the SNP. The SNP has only 21 of 73 constituencies, yet these constituencies are being awarded half the money. I would like to know why they are ignoring the needs of the people of Cumbernauld and seemingly focusing funding to SNP local authorities.

"This is a big blow to the people of Cumbernauld, who missed out in August and are missing out once again. They deserve a lot more than the SNP are giving them.

"I will once again write to the Minister and seek answers to this unfortunate decision."