Aberdeen and Inverness City Deal negotiations to begin

George Osborne said negotiations would begin

Aberdeen and Inverness could be the next two cities to benefit from City Deal status worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

Chancellor George Osborne announced negotiations would begin with the local authorities in his Budget statement.

If successful, it could unlock a major round of new investment.

Glasgow City Council signed a City Deal with the UK and Scottish governments last year which is expected to result in the funding of major projects.

A bid for City Deal status worth £2.9bn was officially launched by the leaders of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire councils earlier this month.

Highland Council is preparing a bid for up to £300m of funding.

It involves a combination of government grants and borrowing powers to secure a region's economic future.

Several projects in the Aberdeen area could benefit from the funding

Highland Council is to make a bid for tens of millions of pounds of government funding