The Scottish Government

Jim Mather, Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism

Friday, November 30, 2007

This Government's purpose and ambition of increased sustainable growth is the 'North Star' to which we should all be steering a constant course.

Our objective of matching the UK growth rate by 2011 is important but it is only a step on the way to building a stronger economy able to match and exceed our competitors.

We need to face the fact that Scotland's growth record over the last three decades has been mediocre. But the current situation is a great opportunity to catch up and converge with the arc of prosperity that surrounds our country - Ireland to the west, Iceland to the north, Norway to the east.

These countries are amongst the wealthiest in the world and they illustrate Scotland's potential for sustained economic growth.

As a nationalist, I don't think we can fully release Scotland's boundless potential without independence. However that doesn't mean we cannot begin to move in the right direction with the effective exploitation of microeconomic levers currently at our disposal and an agenda to de-clutter and increase confidence in Scotland.

I believe strongly that the best way to make progress - and the only way to achieve our fullest potential - is independence.

We operate in a global economy where competition is fierce and getting fiercer, where the pace of change is accelerating all the time. But that situation is tailor-made for a small flexible asset-rich nation of able talented people - with an international reputation for integrity and reliability - and the full power to compete.

I have absolutely no doubt that we have the capacity within us as a Government and as a nation to achieve a real, positive and beneficial change in our economic prospects in the years ahead.

This blog is now closed to further comments.

Comments

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• 81. Gordon McAuslane - Ayrshire

  Tuesday, October 30, 2007 14:41

  # Montrosian - October 28th
  
  Oh, Mr Montrosian., you are a scared little bunny along with your fellow Scots with English partners fleeing the country as soon as the oil runs out and handouts from Daddy (the Treasury) in London have stopped!
  
  Others of us will be staying on to see a new Scotland, its infrastructure built up with the last of the oil revenues and prosperous with new clean industries in the renewable energy field, tourism, and oil expertise which we can export to the rest of the world.
  
  By the "horrible things from the past", I take it your mean the collapse of heavy engineering, the destruction of the fishing industry, high unemployment, emigration, bad health, inequality, poor social mobility and drug abuse. Oh, I forgot - death and destruction both inflicted and suffered by war of our own making!
  
  These "horrible things from the past" have all happened within living memory and, you may have noted, under government from London.
  
  What makes you think life will be any better in England when you and yours shift down there. With an economy based on house prices, shopping, gazing into computer monitors and buying and selling stocks and shares and currencies on the markets and then, suddenly, no oil to prop it all up, it will not be all roses.
  
  If I were you I'd bet on Montrose and an independent Scotland! Bet on your fellow Scots. They are as good as any nation on earth!
  

• 82. John B Dick - Rothesay

  Wednesday, October 31, 2007 00:02

  Jim.
  
  A serious question, and since as you know I am one of your constituents, whoever moderates this page for you might take the initiative of ensuring that I get an answer whether by email or preferably by letting us see your views on this blog.
  
  I have concerns that you, and Mike Russell (whom I respect as one of the thinking MSP's ) are on the economic right of the party. The SNP's unique advantage as a campaign masquerading as a political party is that they can be pragmatic rather than dogmatic. Still, I have read that the SNP is said to be "pro business" and I wonder exactly what that means.
  
  I wouldn't wnt you to be anti-business, of course, but does it mean that you accept unreservedly and uncritically the globalisation consensus? Scotland has deep egalitarian traditions, which can be castigated as "socialist," by critics from the right.
  
  I would like to know what you think about the place of SMALL business (in the greatest small country in the world) and what they can acheive in places like Cairndow. How can we encourage SME's rather than foreign wned multinationals as a way of spreading our bets?
  
  In Tito's time the notionally communist Yugoslavia encouraged businesses with up to seven employees other than family members. You don't get economies of scale that way, but you do get customer responsive management.
  
  There are negative issues with SME's too. How can we get small businesses in the building trade to pay their VAT? There is no need to increase the tax burden on the honest and sober.

• 83. tormod - aberdeenshire

  Thursday, November 1, 2007 16:44

  If the SNP are to be seen as continously being a party that breaks its promises are the propects of an independent Scotland fading. Opinion polls are showing a drop in those wanting independence and the government being battered by the other parties for not producing figures. My hopes are fading that Scotland will be independent

• 84. livilion - livingston

  Friday, November 2, 2007 09:43

  79. Montrosian - Montrose, Angus
  Sunday, October 28, 2007 15:31
  
  What a low opinion you must have of your fellow Scots, I take it you really are Scottish?
  
  Much of my extended family are English, my own grandmother was born a Cockney.
  
  I moved back from Hertfordshire to the Lothians with many others, English included, when Scottish devolution was introduced.
  
  Oil running out in 2015? I've heard that line spun since 1974.
  Here's what the last boss of BP had to say about it:
  
  Lord Browne BP Group Chief Executive
  17 January 2006
  Aberdeen's Exhibition and Conference Centre
  Quote
  >>>...When I first came to Aberdeen the general expectation was that activity would be over by 1990.
  When I came back in 1990, the general expectation was that the North Sea would have closed down by the year 2000.
  
  In 2005, UK North Sea hydrocarbon production was around 3.3 million barrels of oil-equivalent PER DAY.
  
  This year, according to independent estimates, UKCS production will still comfortably exceed 3 million barrels of oil-equivalent per day with total North Sea production (including the Netherlands and Norway) of over 9 million barrels of oil-equivalent per day.
  
  And the resources are there which could keep production going for many years to come.
  
  So the end is not nigh....
  
  
  ...In total, the industry has invested over £40 billion in capital and operating expense in the UKCS(UKcontinental shelf) over the last five years.
  
  BP has invested £5.5 billion over that period, and that investment enabled us to bring on-stream three new fields in 2005 alone - Clair, Farragon and Rhum.
  
  Now, in response to the increase in world prices, there is the possibility of that investment being sustained and even growing. (oil was then at $54boe, it it now in the high $80's and rising)
  
  We intend to invest between £1.3 billion and £1.4 billion here in the UK this year, in existing fields as well as in new activities.
  
  This includes continued development of Clair and Rhum; completion of our Magnus extension project; further development on the ETAP and Foinaven fields; and major new projects at Schiehallion North West and around the Central North Sea Harding field.
  
  In addition, our major re-development of the Valhall field in Norway will move into the execute phase in 2006.
  
  In total, this year we plan to bring 38 new BP-operated wells onto production...<<<
  End Quote
  
  An awful lot of work and money going into a resource that will be gone by 2015, is it not?
  HM Treasury project income of £10-12bn a year from North Sea Oil for the forseeable future based on Brent Crude @ $64boe.
  
  What could you get for that sort of money?

• 85. Dave Eastabrook - Largs, Ayrshire

  Saturday, November 3, 2007 00:19

  Well, not quite sure what the question is above, as I can't see one, so I'll make them up as I go along.
  
  1). What do you think I should do about tourism?
  
  OK, this was a bad year for tourism though I'm sure visitscotland will say something about achieving all objectives blah blah. There's nothing you can do about the weather, or the floods down south, but we need to take advantage of the bad things - like the weather. Many tourists come here from constantly hot sunny climates - they WANT it to rain and be misty. We need to tell them "we have real weather here right now, come and see it". Unfortunately visitscotland will tell them that Scotland is full, as they only represent their members, which probably only represents 10% [1] of the accomodation here. To this end Visitscotland should have a free register for all accomodation in Scotland, regardless of membership. It's not a club for visitscotland's benefit, it should be for tourists primarily (the customer) and those in tourism next. No exclusive membership - many B&Bs with 1,2 or 3 rooms cannot afford the steep fees and percentages for membership. Another thing I find on my travels is pockets of full accomodation - and pockets that are near empty, Visitscotland should have a clue about this, and not only keep it updated on their excuse for a website, but should notice slacker periods - and take out block adverts in countries telling that "now is a good time to tour here, there's accomodation available right now". There needs to be more pertinent info available to tourists, such as, this year, petrol in Fort William was cheaper than many places in Glasgow. In fact, replacing visitscotland with something, let's call it STB - Scottish Tourist Board would be a step in the right direction, Another would be to get rid of the "cool" (i.e. tacky and faintly ridiculous) slogan "live it". What on earth is that supposed to mean?
  [1] 99% of statistics are biased guesses, this is my proud contribution
  
  2). What do you think I should do about Energy?
  
  Well, now, we are going to need more power and energy as our economy grows, and we don't want brownouts. It's well and good advancing advancing green energy, it's not going to be enough in the short to mid-term. So we need more power, in fact especially when Hunterston and Torness outlive their lifetime, we need more nuclear power, to fill the gap while wind and wave power come along - and cleaner and less expensive to clear up fusion power (contamination of concrete etc. is far less and has a much lower half-life IIUC). Meanwhile, make sure we don't pay more for our own energy than those we export it to pay.
  
  3). What should I do about enterprise?
  
  First, get rid of Scottish Enterprise, it's a social club, very nice people, but no use to me as an SME with the emphasis on the "S". With the savings, give all SME's a straight "25,000 for investment and leave us to it. Thanks, I know exactly how I'll spend mine, and there's a good chance Scotland will benefit within 10 years, in taxes and employment, as well as keeping me off the bru (well, maybe not the irn bru). Biggest thing though you can do for me, Jim if I may call you that, is to get the EU off my back with it's corporation biased directives, its ridiculously expensive licence fees that would be more than my annual turnover, and its illegal discrimination against small businesses, both explicit and implicit. I like the DTI - get DTI offices here in Scotland, some in Glasgow, some Edinburgh, some Aberdeen and Inverness. If / when independence comes along, we'll need our own DTI (you could always ask Brian Wilson if he'll do a spin for us,he is ex-SNP after all).
  
  Some of these can be done now, some with increased devolved powers. You'll also find that Scottish Ministers have a lot of power of exemption and exclusion from Acts passed at Westminster regardless of what powers are devolved so far (I've had to read some Acts, so I know). But to get the jackpot we need independence, and the strong will to use that independence to promote all sorts of our own enterprise.
  
  And please consider an independent Scotland outside the EU. The EU may be good for some medium to large enterprises though I think it favours more the global plc's who have brainwashed us into believing we need the EU, but it does no good for small business, IMHO, and it stifles initiative, as that gets in the way of its vested interests. 98% of some statistic in Scotland is to do with small business, why let the tail of the EU wag the Rampant Lion?

• 86. s burnett - aberdeenshire

  Thursday, November 15, 2007 07:51

  if we had got the right amount of money instead of the pittence we got doled out the S.N.P. could have lived up to all its promises

• 87. Stop Whinging - Fife

  Thursday, November 15, 2007 22:16

  #86
  
  S Burnett
  
  Well that's a brilliant observation, wish I thought of it. All you need is to be given enough money to make a success of your promises, wow that's radical!!!
  
  I think the truth is that you cut your cloth to suit your income. Mr Swinney knew how much money he was going to get before the SNP were elected and STILL made promises he could not keep. He hoped that the Scottish people would buy his excuse of blaming the UK government for his failure.
  
  At least he's found one sucker, the rest of us are not so gullible.

• 88. Gordon Murray - Livingston

  Saturday, November 17, 2007 15:01

  Stop Whinging - Fife

• 89. Barry Scarfe - Brenntwood, Essex, England, UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NI

  Wednesday, November 21, 2007 04:01

  David Glen, Glasgow, England's interest is in having Scotland as a strong partner in Great Britain along with us. No sensible and rational person in England wants Scotland to leave the United Kingdom - a great country we all helped to build.
  
  
  You may be small but you have always punched well above your weight so take some pride in that.
  
  So, please don't go Scotland. We value you and we want to continue our great partnership with you.
  
  

• 90. Gordon Murray - Livingston

  Saturday, November 24, 2007 18:21

  89. Barry Scarfe - Brenntwood, Essex, England, UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NI, Atlantic Archipelago, European Union, Planet Earth, our Galaxy, the Milky Way, the Universe. no post code.
  
  Wednesday, November 21, 2007 04:01
  
  Most of us in Scotland value that same partnership, however today it is not a partnership of equals.
  I and many others would like to see the partnership renegotiated to be a bit less to England's constant advantage, at our expense.
  
  We are not going and cannot go anywhere, plate techtonics take an age to move nations anywhere these days.
  
  See how everyone loves the Irish?
  Just imagine the Scots like that, still best pals, and happy to get a dig in now and then about our respective sporting slip ups.
  

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