'Clear demand' for Galloway and Borders national parks

The charities said there was community support for a new national park in the Borders

Two landscape charities have said there is "clear local community demand" for new national parks in Galloway and the Scottish Borders.

The creation of at least one more in this parliamentary session is part of a power-sharing agreement between the SNP and Scottish Green Party.

A briefing sent to MSPs said two parts of southern Scotland had already shown they were behind their bids.

It also highlighted the need for a national strategy for the parks.

There are currently two national parks in Scotland, at the Cairngorms and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs.

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In their briefing, the Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland (APRS) and the Scottish Campaign for National Parks (SCNP) said it was clear there was community support for new ones to be created in the Borders and Galloway.

The organisations have also offered to be part of the site selection process.

Among their suggestions is the consideration of the establishment of an overall National Parks Service as a central source of advice and expertise.

The groups previously drew up a map of seven potential locations but they stressed that other sites across the country might also be suitable.

For many years the Scottish government said it had no plans to give the designation to new parts of the country.

However, a power-sharing deal last year saw a commitment to create at least one in the lifetime of this parliament.