Scotland is to go ahead with plans for a Scottish National Investment Bank, as well as an additional £7bn investment in infrastructure and a campaign to support businesses looking to export overseas
The programme was launched by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who said it ‘continues and accelerates the major reforms underway in our health, education and justice systems - underpinned by our new progressive system of income tax.’
As well as the extra spending on schools, hospitals, transport, digital connectivity and clean energy by 2026, the programme has a number of targeted business improvement plans.
An Export Growth Plan, to be developed with the Enterprise and Skill Strategic Board and published by spring 2019, will see £20m invested over three years in a range of measures.
These include investing £2m to support 150 businesses to increase overseas activity and create 100 new business to business peer mentorships per year for new exporters. There will also be more expert finance support for Scottish companies looking to enter new markets.
The programme includes a new Fair Work plan will see living wage, gender pay transparency and the exclusion of zero hours contracts become conditions for business support.
The programme states: ‘We will add criteria on fair work practices including the Living Wage, being transparent on gender-equal pay and the exclusion of exploitative zero-hours contracts to business support grants through Regional Selective Assistance and other large Scottish Enterprise job-related grants – starting with grants offered in 2019-20.’
The Scottish government is to invest an additional £5m over the next three years to support around 2,000 women to return to work, and will establish a national retraining partnership, working with trade unions and employer bodies to help workers upskill and retrain where necessary.
Legislation to support the establishment and capitalisation of the Scottish National Investment Bank will be introducing in the coming year, with the aim of the bank beginning investment in business from 2020.
Other business-focused pledges in the programme include introducing a Non-Domestic Rates Bill; more support from enterprise and skills agencies to help businesses navigate Brexit; and Procurement Innovation Partnerships working collaboratively with public bodies to procure new goods and services to solve social challenges, creating opportunities for SMEs including microbusinesses.
Delivering for Today, Investing for Tomorrow The Government’s Programme for Scotland 2018-19 is here
Report by Pat Sweet
