75 years of East Kilbride, Scotland’s first new town

That this House marks the 6 of May 2022 as 75 years since the designation of East Kilbride, Scotland’s first new town under the New Towns Act 1946, designed to provide good homes and jobs as part of the redistribution of Glasgow’s population with a masterplan aiming to set the best possible example in environmental layout and meet the needs of the local community; notes that East Kilbride had a population of approximately 2,400 in 1947 and recognises that ambition set means that today East Kilbride remains Scotland’s largest new town; further notes that East Kilbride has been a fantastic place for families to grow up and that it has been integral to the lives of numerous notable individuals including William and John Hunter, Lorraine Kelly, John Hannah, Ally McCoist, Roddy Frame, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Kirsty Young, Blythe Duff, Julie Wilson Nimmo, Mark Warren, Ross Montgomery, Robbie Winters and David Proctor to name but a few; further notes that George Orwell wrote his most famous cult classic 1984 while a patient at Hairmyres Hospital; commends the contribution of those who have served East Kilbride across culture, politics, business and development including Angus McConnell and John Wright; celebrates the landmark work of the East Kilbride Development Corporation undertaken until 1996; looks forward to continued prioritisation and regeneration of East Kilbride by South Lanarkshire Council including levelling up for East Kilbride’s town centre, local economy and development in order to inspire the continued success of East Kilbride for the future.