First minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the three-year Scottish Growth Scheme, which she said was designed to help unlock investment for the private sector.  Individual investment guarantees, and some loans, of up to £5m will be available to small and medium sized firms who would otherwise be unable to grow because of a lack of investment finance.

The scheme will be open to new and early-stage high growth potential companies, with clear export growth plans, particularly in technology-intensive sectors and businesses in emerging markets, such as financial technology. As financial guarantees, the support will not come from existing spending plans, and will instead see the Scottish government share some of the risk faced by small companies, when they make big investment decisions, Sturgeon said.

Describing the policy as ‘an exceptional response to an exceptional economic challenge’, Sturgeon said it was a ‘half a billion pound vote of confidence in Scottish business, Scottish workers and the Scottish economy’.

Craig Vickery, head of ACCA Scotland, said: ‘The Scottish Growth Scheme will be a welcome reassurance to business, particularly SMEs, after the uncertainty of the past two months.

‘With Brexit negotiations yet to begin it is vital that we continue to focus on and support Scotland’s strengths as a major centre for services and that we remain open for business with global trade partners as well as within the UK.’