SIR, There is not a question of supporting one project such as the Great Tapestry of Scotland at the expense of another tourist related development such as AIMUp. Your paper is currently running parallel stories about a choice for Councillors between being in the Administration and being a lone voice in Opposition. One of the reasons for being in the Administration is because together with colleagues I can achieve more than lone voices can when just shouting from the side-lines.

Politics is about power and by being within the Administration I can have influence – if I win the support of colleagues - on the decisions we take, including how we allocate capital. At present I have colleagues within the Administration who like me want to find a mechanism for financially supporting AIMUp, but it has not yet found a place in our capital plan because a compelling case for AIMUp is not as advanced as for the Tapestry. The Tapestry and AIMUp are significantly different projects.

Designing and stitching the Tapestry was a nation-wide community-arts project involving over 1000 volunteers; it has attracted wide-spread publicity both through its touring exhibitions and through book sales. The Tapestry has high-profile backing from national personalities on its Board of Trustees, and as it is intended that the Tapestry will be added to over time; it is not just a textile it is an historic statement and a living work of art. So it is not just a local tourist attraction, it will be a national attraction in its own right and as a result will draw new visitors to the Borders. This adds value both through new spending by new visitors and widening the opportunity to attract new visitors to other attractions; which in turn will sustain and create income and thus jobs in other tourist-related businesses. It is because of this added value to wider tourism in the Borders that other attractions, such as Abbotsford, see the Tapestry as an asset and not as competition, and because it is seen as a national attraction we are getting nearly half the capital cost paid by the Scottish Government.

I think AIMUp is a fabulous project – a first of its kind. There is no comparable mountain bike uplift in Scotland and it offers a great chance to widen access to new terrain in the Tweed valley for dedicated downhill enthusiasts as well as cross-country cyclists, families and walkers; so as a tourist attraction it appeals to a different demographic. AIMUp has been designed, championed and financed by enthusiastic local volunteers and it has been supported by Scottish Borders Council both through the stages of planning, and during the 2012 community ballot. There is clearly local backing but AIMUp needs to be seen as a tourist attraction of at least regional significance and, frankly, we are not there yet.

There are detractors who argue that AIMUp will not significantly add to the number of visiting downhill enthusiast, because it will just displace visitors from other mountain biking locations. So whilst I had hoped the project could attract either Lottery or European funding in 2014 those doors don’t seem to be open; and crucially public bodies such as Scottish Enterprise are enthusiastic, but not yet convinced enough to put their hands in those public pockets.

To its credit Scottish Enterprise has backed the South of Scotland Alliance’s proposal to prioritise mountain biking in the Tweed Valley, but we need to translate 'a priority’ into pounds.

There is a link, though, between the Tapstry and projects like AIMUp. Increasing the number of tourists and visitors coming to the Scottish Borders will be aided via the Railway and via the impact and the national attraction of a Tapestry displayed at Tweedbank. We need to get out of the restricted mind-set which sees the Scottish Borders as Short Break destination and encourage visitors to stay longer and to “Take Time in the Tweed Valley”. As well as supporting indigenous and new enterprises, we need to attract more tourists and visitors to stay longer and to enjoy more adventures here. AIMUp could be part of those adventures. So the Tapestry can add to and does not compete with a business case for AIMUp and to set the Tapestry against AIMUp is a false choice. It may be a tough call but I want both!

Councillor Stuart Bell Tweeddale East SBC Executive Member for Economic Development