His congratulations come in response to the news last week that the town had won the Enterprising Britain Awards.

Following the accolade Scarborough will go on to represent Great Britain at the European Enterprise Awards.

Sir Jimmy, who has a flat in Scarborough and a long-running association with the town, told the Evening News: "When I saw Scarbor- ough had won this tremendous award it felt great to be part of such a great town.

"As a Freeman of the borough of Scarbor- ough words cannot describe how pleased I was for all the people who made this possible."

Scarborough's submission to the competition was based on many of the achievements of the town's Renaissance Project, including the £4.8 million Woodend Creative Workspace, the harbour pontoons project and the Rotunda, which underwent a £4.4 million facelift recently.

The regeneration concepts have also included the Spa refurbishments, and the introduction of the prestigious Tourism Awards. The North Bay developments and the new casino are not part of the official renaissance programme, but have added to the level of action and attention.

The judges were also presented with the plans for Scarborough's new £9 million Business Park, which will see the existing business park double in size.