Scotland's Economy

  • This week: 11/01/19

    11th January 2019 by

    Tay Cities Investment The First Minister announced an additional £50 million investment in the Tay cities area to support manufacturing, businesses and the delivery of the Cross Tay Link Road. Read more FiSAB Meeting Economy Secretary Derek Mackay and Public Finance Minister Kate Forbes attended the first FiSAB meeting of the year to discuss skills,...

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  • This Week: 28/12/2018

    28th December 2018 by

    Priorities for 2019 Finance and Economy Secretary Derek Mackay has set out his priorities for 2019 in an article in The Herald. Read more Improving ferry access Further accessibility improvements will be made on Scotland’s ferries following the fourth round of awards from the Ferries Accessibility Fund. Almost £80,000 is being awarded to Serco NorthLink...

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  • In the news: climate change and business

    24th December 2018 by

    Findings released by World Wildlife Foundation Scotland today suggests that small to medium-sized businesses feel less prepared for the risks of climate change compared to larger businesses. The survey of 300 businesses shows that only 2 in 5 of Scotland’s smaller firms feel prepared for risks posed by climate change, while over three-quarters of larger...

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  • This week: 21/12/2018

    21st December 2018 by

    £2m to assist Glasgow’s fire recovery Around £1.85 million of the Scottish Government’s Fire Recovery Fund is to be used by Glasgow City Council to provide business rates relief and support business recovery. Every business in the immediate fire cordon area and eligible businesses in the wider Sauchiehall Street area will receive 100% business rates...

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  • Improving construction industry payments

    18th December 2018 by

    Cash retention – the practice of withholding a percentage of the payment on construction projects – will be among the issues considered as part of a Scottish Government consultation planned in 2019. The use of cash retentions in the construction industry is commonplace and when used properly is an effective project assurance tool. However, many...

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  • This week 7/11

    7th December 2018 by

    Small Business Saturday Did you know there are over 340,000 small businesses in Scotland? The Scottish Government is investing over £1.25 billion in City Region Deals, looking to benefit small businesses by invigorating local economies. Read more here   Review of employability services Minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills Jamie Hepburn announced how the...

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  • EU taking more than half of Scotland’s exports

    6th December 2018 by

    The publication of HMRC’s Regional Trade Statistics this morning shows the importance of the EU market to Scotland. Speaking from Hamburg, where he is discussing further growth in Scotland’s trade with Europe, Trade Minister Ivan McKee, said: “These are very encouraging figures. The value of Scotland’s annual goods exports increased by 6 per cent to...

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  • Small Business Saturday: small businesses and exports

    1st December 2018 by

    Small Business Saturday gives us the perfect opportunity to encourage small businesses in Scotland to think about how exporting could help them grow and for us to outline the help and support that is available if they want to embark on their export journey. Improving Scotland’s export performance is central to growing Scotland’s economy and...

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  • Small Business Saturday: Digital support for small businesses

    1st December 2018 by

    Small Business Saturday is an excellent opportunity to reflect on the many ways that digital is already helping Scotland’s small businesses to grow – and it goes without saying that innovation is at the very heart of this. The Scottish Government is committed to giving small businesses access to cutting-edge research and technology to help...

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  • Increasing Scotland’s trading capabilities

    20th November 2018 by

    The 2018/19 Programme for Government includes a commitment to invest an additional £20million over three years to grow Scotland’s export potential. To support this ambition, I am seeking new members to join Scotland’s Trade Board. Since 2017, the board, which is made up of a wide range of business experts, has championed the internationalisation of...

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