Scotland’s economy resilient and growing - Angus Robertson

Scottish Enterprise head Adrian Gillespie

According to their latest annual report, over 1300 companies and partners have been supported across Scotland, enabling the creation or safeguarding of 16,700 jobs.

This is the strongest performance since this measure was introduced, with inward investment at a five-year high. Notably, 60 per cent of new inward investment jobs were in the energy transition sector, a critical area for Scotland’s future economic growth.

In addition to job creation, Scottish Enterprise’s efforts unlocked £1.9 billion in capital investment and facilitated £2.15 bn in planned exports. A significant £449 million in innovation investment was also driven by Scottish businesses. This is also reflected in a new report by Lloyds Bank that showed 44 per cent of Scottish businesses identified new technology as a priority investment area. The same report gave the good news that business confidence in Scotland rose significantly in August, up 13 points to 64 per cent.

Edinburgh and the South East city region have been key contributors to this success. Scottish Enterprise worked with 570 businesses in this region, building close relationships with over 250 of them. This collaboration led to the creation or safeguarding of 3854 real living wage jobs and facilitated more than £60m in capital investment. Additionally, projects in the region attracted almost £100m in innovation investment.

Scottish Enterprise’s investment activities generated over £62m in income, which will be re-invested into public services and the wider economy. While economic times are tough, Scottish Enterprise and the business community are going from strength to strength.

Angus Robertson is Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary