Scottish government selects Galloway as preferred site for new national park

The chair of the Galloway National Park Association said the area had ‘fantastic hills, mountains, moors and coastlines’. Photograph: VisitScotland/Damian Shields

Galloway has been selected by the Scottish government as the preferred site for Scotland’s third national park.

The region, which came out top from a shortlist of five, will now be the subject of a consultation and an investigation into its suitability before potentially being made official by 2026. The unsuccessful candidate areas were Lochaber, Loch Awe, Scottish Borders and Tay Forest.