STA Update: Scottish Government’s Programme for Government – Key Headlines & Summary

First Minister Humza Yousaf has this week (Tuesday 5th September 2023) announced Scottish Government’s Programme for Government (PfG).

SUMMARY

Three missions for Scottish Government to deliver:

-Equality – Tackling poverty and protecting people from harm
-Opportunity – Building a fair, green and growing economy
-Community – Delivering efficient and effective public services

“Each mission is connected. When delivered together, they will make a real and positive difference to the lives of people across Scotland.”

KEY HEADLINES FOR TOURISM, HOSPITALITY & BUSINESS

Tourism Mentions
-In his statement to the Scottish Parliament, the FM said: “We will continue to support Scotland’s thriving tourism sector and to promote major events.”
-The PfG “seeks to attract investment, drive innovation and grow our wellbeing economy – playing to our strengths in areas such as data and technology, energy, financial services, food and drink, and tourism, while also seizing the new economic opportunities presented by the just transition.”
-Will support regional empowerment and growth by acting on the recommendations of the Regional Economic Policy Review and working with local government and other partners to develop Scotland’s network of Regional Economic Partnerships, supporting our rural and island businesses, including tourism, and communities in particular.
-PfG states that innovation will to be crucial to ensuring that “successful industries such as tourism and financial services remain competitive and continue to be supported.”
-Mention of £443,000 of support to Scottish Enterprise to establish a new Agritourism Monitor Farm Programme over 2023-24 and 2024-25, and funding of Scottish Agritourism to provide a leadership role to help deliver the Scottish Agritourism Strategy.

New Deal for Business
-PfG says that supporting businesses “will help create good jobs, deliver fair wages, expand our tax base and help to provide important revenue for us to invest in tackling poverty, improving our public services and delivering Fair Work.”
-“When businesses succeed, Scotland succeeds.”
-Will implement the recommendations of the New Deal for Business Group – “putting this at the heart of our economic strategy.”
-SG says it will work with business to identify and remove regulations that are no longer required “if a good case can be made,” and will engage with businesses from the earliest stage of policy development.
-Will establish a new Small Business Unit “to ensure that the interests of small businesses are always considered” and will work with partners to transform the way support is provided to small businesses and to help small businesses raise productivity and reduce costs.
-The FM said the SG will build on the work of the NDFB Group, giving the example of considering improvements to the non-domestic rates system.
-The FM said: “These early actions demonstrate our determination to listen and to act as we build a new relationship with business.”

Alcohol Advertising Restrictions
-To undertake a review of the alcohol marketing consultation, publishing responses by the end of 2023. The First Minister said during his speech: “We will always support jobs and the economy. We will also work with industry where appropriate, but be in no doubt we will take further action to reduce alcohol harm and particularly to protect children from its ill effects.”

Deposit Return Scheme
-Work with businesses to develop plans for the delivery of the Deposit Return Scheme from 2025, subject to UK Government legislation.

Innovation and Entrepreneurship
-Increased support for entrepreneurs, including greater backing for proven initiatives such as Scottish Edge and the Scottish Ecosystem Fund and focus enterprise agencies on creating the conditions in which businesses start and scale successfully.
-SG says it is committed to a new £15 million package of measures to support innovation and entrepreneurship.

Investment
-Establish a dedicated Investment Unit in the Scottish Government to act on the forthcoming recommendations of the First Minister’s Investor Panel and to provide a clear route for investor engagement.

Affordable housing
-Secondary legislation to enable councils to apply up to a 100% premium on Council Tax rates for second homes aimed at freeing up more affordable housing.

Remote, Rural and Islands
-SG will publish a Remote, Rural and Islands Housing Action Plan this autumn to help retain and attract people in rural and island communities – making available up to £25 million from our Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget over the period 2023-28 to identify homes for key workers in rural communities.
-Agriculture Bill to be introduced to provide powers to deliver the Scottish Government’s Vision for Agriculture that will replace current common agricultural policy schemes. It will focus on high quality food production, climate mitigation and adaptation, nature protection and restoration, and wider rural development.
-Land Reform Bill will be introduced to improve transparency of land ownership, further empower communities, and help ensure that large-scale landholdings are delivering in the public interest. It will also modernise tenant farming and small landholding legislation.
-Will continue to press UK Government on a Rural Visa Pilot.

Workforce
-Will boost wages by increasing the number of employers who pay at least the Real Living Wage including through Fair Work conditionality for grants, introducing sectoral Fair Work agreements, and improving outcomes by delivering the Fair Work Action Plan.
-Announced pilot for childcare from nine months to the end of primary school, plans to accelerate childcare expansion for two-year olds and more scope for parents to personally manage childcare.
-Focus on getting more care leavers into work.

Transport
-Will make progress on the dualling of the A9 between Perth and Inverness and take forward the procurement of the Tomatin to Moy project, make improvements to the A96, including dualling Inverness to Nairn and the Nairn Bypass and publish the review of the A96 Dualling Programme, and continue to press the UK Government to fulfil their commitments to contribute to funding improvements to the A75.
-Electrifying the Glasgow to Barrhead Line, opening East Linton station and re-opening the line to Levenmouth, including new stations at Cameron Bridge and Leven.
-Publish the Fair Fares Review on both the cost and availability of bus, rail and ferry services, and introduce pilot for the removal of ScotRail peak-time fares from October.
-Lay secondary legislation before the end of 2023 to enable bus franchising and partnership options to be developed, as more powers to Councils.

Note: The full Programme for Government can be viewed here.