Bathgate Business Improvement District
The final item of business is a members' business debate on motion S3M-1596, in the name of Mary Mulligan, on yes to Bathgate business improvement district. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament notes the hugely successful outcome of the ballot to establish the first Business Improvement District (BID) in Scotland in Bathgate, West Lothian; further notes that out of 205 votes cast by local businesses, 190 were in support of the BID proposals and congratulates the BID steering group chairperson, Sam Crawford, his implementation group colleagues, Amanda Finlayson and Pat Kerr, and all others involved in developing the Bathgate BID on their amazing success; acknowledges that the ballot result is an overwhelming endorsement by the business community of the BID concept, and hopes other Scottish towns may follow in Bathgate's footsteps.
I thank those members who signed my motion and those who have stayed for this evening's debate.
I welcome the opportunity to open a debate on the role and importance of the business improvement district initiative not only because Bathgate, which is in my constituency, will be the first town in Scotland to establish a BID—I will say a little more about that later—but because of the need to ensure that the Scottish Government is fully committed to the existing and future BIDs. I want to make a case for a more strategic role for the Scottish Government in the economic and social regeneration of Scotland's towns and cities through the BID structure.
Most of Scotland's traditional town centres are a source of great pride for the local community, but some are a source of civic concern and too many are seen as tired and run-down. Such places mark the heart of our communities. They contain core features that give a unique identity and beauty to our towns and villages. They provide a gathering place for civic expression in good times and bad. Equally important, they are places where people choose to raise their families and to set up businesses. They are places where people go to work and where they spend their leisure time.
The challenge for Scotland is to renew and reinvigorate our traditional town centres to realise their potential economic and social benefits. For our traditional town centres to be all that our local communities want them to be, the Scottish Government, local authorities and local businesses must work in partnership to promote a common agenda for their betterment. That common purpose has been the guiding principle that has underpinned the success story that Bathgate has become over the past few years.
A successful partnership between West Lothian Council—officers and councillors—and the business community through the Bathgate traders forum, by working together on a shared agenda, provided the foundation from which the pilot BID company first emerged. The BID company—Enterprising Bathgate Ltd—has developed the area into Scotland's first fully fledged BID.
I add my congratulations to the many that have already been received by all those who worked so hard to achieve the outstanding endorsement of the BID proposal. Too many are involved to highlight everyone's contribution, but I will mention several. Those who have been at the heart of the BID project from the outset include John Masson and Alistair Shaw from West Lothian Council; Gordon Blair and Caroline Burton, who are also from the council; Councillor John McGinty, who ensured that the vital link between the council and businesses was maintained; Ian Davison Porter, who provided not only expertise but a vital link between businesses and the Scottish Executive; and David Stein who, as chairperson of Bathgate traders forum, helped to modernise the approach to business in the town and who personally worked with businesses to generate support for the BID proposal.
I should also mention the three amigos, who are sometimes called—or perhaps describe themselves as—Jack, Victor and Isa, after the three loveable characters from the television show "Still Game". They are more commonly known as Sam Crawford, who is the Bathgate BID chairman, and Amanda Finlayson and Pat Kerr, who are his two colleagues at the heart of the steering group. They are all in the public gallery this evening. If anyone can claim the lion's share of the credit for the successful outcome of the Bathgate BID, it is unquestionably those three. Their hard work and commitment ensured that the many barriers to a successful BID ballot outcome were overcome. The massive yes vote that they achieved owed much to their dedication and drive. Having a local businessperson such as Sam Crawford leading the BID initiative and other local businesspeople in prominent roles supporting it gave the Bathgate BID an authenticity and credibility that it would otherwise have lacked.
I hope that the chamber will join me in celebrating the achievement of Bathgate and the other two BID pilot areas—Inverness and Clackmannanshire business area—that have now established full BID status. BIDs are in Scotland to stay. With three BID areas now established, three areas to ballot before the summer and in excess of 30 areas considering an application for BID status, it is essential that the Scottish Government does its bit to promote BIDs and to encourage a more strategic role for BID areas.
I welcome the Scottish National Party Government's belated conversion to the cause of BIDs—everyone rejoices at the salvation of a repentant sinner. I welcome the fact that the chamber will no longer hear Government support for BIDs described—as it once was by Mr Ewing—as, "bungs of public money."
Repentance is welcome, but the Government is still some way short of being able to claim that it is the saviour of Scotland's traditional towns and villages. I am increasingly concerned that, having converted on the surface to the cause of BIDs, the Scottish Government is in reality damning them by faint praise. Providing a one-off payment of £15,000 to prospective BID areas falls somewhat short of what Bathgate's experience shows is needed. The development of the Bathgate BID, from outset to ballot result, cost more than £170,000, including a contribution of £105,000 from the previous Scottish Executive. The Scottish Government cannot will the future of BIDs and not ensure that it has provided the means for them.
The Bathgate experience shows that local business and local authorities are willing to do their bit, but the Scottish Government must step up to the plate. It must also play a role in providing strategic support for communities that are seeking to improve the economic and social value of their towns. Without the aid of the Scottish Government, it is still beyond the capacity of BIDs and most local authorities to tackle redundant and derelict buildings, areas that require substantial environmental improvement and major traditional town centre regeneration schemes. The Scottish Government must respond to that challenge and become the third strategic partner in developing meaningful solutions to the challenges of improving Scotland's traditional town centres, by supporting the existing efforts of local government and local businesses.
The establishment of a fund to which bids for additional resources could be made would act as an incentive to communities to encourage the creation of more BID candidate areas, and would provide existing BID areas and their partner councils with the incentive and resources required to make the much-needed breakthrough in regenerating our traditional towns and villages. I ask the Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism to consider my proposal and look forward to hearing his initial thoughts on it when he sums up.
I thank Mrs Mulligan for securing today's debate. The motion rightly celebrates the achievements and aspirations of the Bathgate business community in establishing, with overwhelming support, the first business improvement district in Scotland. The motion urges other Scottish towns to follow in Bathgate's footsteps. I make my contribution to tonight's debate with that point in mind.
For those who do not know, Bathgate is in the West Lothian constituency, which neighbours mine. Consequently, it has much in common with West Calder and Broxburn, which are in my constituency. Those smaller West Lothian towns have a shared history and heritage and share the challenges of co-existing as near neighbours to the ever-growing and ever-successful Livingston new town—in an ever-changing local and global economy. We must therefore enable the business communities in those small towns to flourish and thrive. In that respect, the business-led BID concept, which is supported locally and nationally by the SNP, is a shining example of how the needs of local businesses and the wider community can be met.
When the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, Mr Swinney, visited Bathgate, he was bowled over by people's commitment to making the BID concept work. Moreover, last night, at an economic debate in Livingston, Mr Mather, the Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism, emphasised the importance of economic partnerships and the need to get everyone in the same room and talking to each other. If we can—to use his words—cross-fertilise and pollinate, we can all move up together, and the BID concept is an excellent example of economic partnership.
The BID team's business plan, which is based on the business community's views and needs with regard to improving its trading conditions and environment, clearly demonstrates that the benefits are more than economic; I have no doubt that it will also deliver environmental, social and cultural dividends. Although the concept is about creating a recognisable brand, its pragmatic focus takes in accessing additional funds and services that will make a difference and will, crucially, enable communities to devise town centre strategies that will keep the heart of our smaller communities pumping.
I am pleased that West Lothian Council's current administration will continue to match-fund the Bathgate BID levy over the next five years. Indeed, the very concept complements the SNP Government's support for small businesses, including the reduction in and scrapping of business rates. [Interruption.] With the recent announcement in West Lothian of job losses at Bausch and Lomb, HSBC and Mahle Engine Systems, the success of the Bathgate BID is a timely reminder of what we can and should be doing to ensure our communities' economic viability.
I, too, thank, commend and send best wishes to Sam Crawford, who chaired the BID steering group; implementation officers Amanda Finlayson, who is one of my constituents, and Pat Kerr; and David Stein as well as the wider Bathgate business community. I, for one, believe that their determination to succeed will make Bathgate and wider West Lothian a better place to work, live in and visit.
I remind members that their mobile phones and BlackBerrys, BlueBerrys, GreenBerrys or whatever they are should be switched off.
I, too, congratulate Mary Mulligan on securing this important debate. Although they have been around since the 1960s in Canada, BIDs are an entirely new concept in Scotland, and we will have to monitor the results of the BID in Bathgate and the other five pilot areas to see whether they do what they say on the tin. I certainly wish the Bathgate BID team, who seem to have built up a good degree of momentum in the area, the very best of luck in what they do between 2008 and 2013. Anything that genuinely helps businesses, local communities and the local economy has to be welcomed, which is indeed why this side of the chamber fought so hard for the reduction in business rates that was introduced at the start of April.
It is no secret that the Scottish Conservatives voted against the BID proposal during the passage of the Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006. We opposed it for two reasons. First, we were against the imposition of a mandatory levy on businesses. Given that businesses can vote for or against the introduction of a BID—or, indeed, not vote at all—we found it difficult to accept that all businesses, particularly those that had voted against the concept, should be forced to pay the associated levy. Indeed, in the current economic climate, some businesses will find it difficult to sustain the levy.
Our second difficulty was that we felt that there was a danger that some services that should be provided by local government would be provided by the BID. Deep down, I hope that both objections turn out to be wrong. If they do, we will be happy to support the concept. The key will be serious monitoring of what happens over the next five years. I know that the BID team has a strong annual monitoring system to put in place, the robustness of which is impressive.
According to the figures in the Bathgate BID's business plan, it is thought that the BID levy will generate about £75,000 a year, certainly in year 1. It could be argued that some of the services that that sum will go towards providing should be provided by local government. The BID will contribute £20,000 towards closed-circuit television monitoring and £3,000 towards lighting, which should surely be funded by the local authority, and £6,000 will be spent on information boards for the town plan, which, again, the council ought to provide. The collection of the levy will cost £3,000 and legal and auditing costs will account for £2,000. That shows that some of our concerns were justified.
Although some of the BID's proposals for expenditure are extremely good, such as those that relate to shop-front improvements and improvements to vennels, including better vennel signage, and will be welcomed by all businesses, I would strongly argue that some of the proposed expenditure should be met by the local authority. Monitoring what happens in Bathgate and in the other BID areas will be crucial. If BIDs provide additionality and do what people hoped they would at the outset, they will make a positive contribution to Scottish business—but they must do that. If they do not succeed in doing that over the five-year period, I strongly believe that the BID concept must be reviewed.
I, too, congratulate Mary Mulligan on securing the debate, and the business community of Bathgate on its successful ballot to establish the first of the three business improvement districts that now exist in Scotland.
BIDs were enabled under the Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006, as Gavin Brown said, and are being piloted in six local authority areas. They are led by local businesses, which decide how the funds that are raised will be used to support the local economy. They are not a substitute for local authority services; rather, they operate through additional partnership arrangements.
I hope that Mary Mulligan will keep Parliament apprised of the progress of the Bathgate BID and, as she does, I hope that other Scottish business communities—they do not have to be in town centres, but could be in rural communities—will follow Bathgate's example. I am sure that many business communities will watch the progress of Bathgate and the other two BIDs with great interest.
Although I am happy to congratulate Bathgate and to support the development of BIDs across Scotland, I remind members that many forms of investment can and should be used to regenerate towns and business communities—the Scottish Government seems to have a strategy of placing all responsibility for regeneration of our communities on the business community. The Government is relying on business rates relief and its somewhat tentative continuation of the BIDs programme.
However, the scenario in the rest of Scotland is not as positive as it is in Bathgate. I will give some examples from my part of the country. Two weeks ago, Centros Miller Dumfries Ltd told Dumfries and Galloway Council that it intends to pull out of a proposed £50 million joint investment in Dumfries town centre, as a result of concerns that commercial property prices will fall.
In the Presiding Officer's constituency of Galloway and Upper Nithsdale, it seems that the Stranraer waterfront development is to be abandoned. Although responsibility for that regeneration project has been transferred from Scottish Enterprise to the council, the £5 million that was originally allocated to the project is no longer available and the council will not be able to find the money on its own. Dumfries town centre has been left with empty properties on the High Street, which will discourage tourists from returning, increase the likelihood of locals using out-of-town shopping malls and make it more difficult for the retail businesses that are still based in the town centre to attract customers. Stranraer might get its casino, but there will not be the additional investment that the town needs. Other members have commented on the problems of other town centres in Dumfries and Galloway—somewhat controversially in the case of Lockerbie, which needs a great injection of investment if it is to pick itself up.
My plea to ministers is that they should not rely on business rates relief as the sole blunt instrument with which to tackle town centre dereliction. We need public sector investment in infrastructure to create vibrant and lively town centres in which local businesses can flourish. BIDs can contribute and I am sure that they will do so, but they were never intended as a substitute for public sector investment. National support, for example through the creation of a town centre regeneration fund, to enable co-investment with local businesses, is also necessary. I am sorry that the Tories did not feel able to support such an approach during the budget process, but I retain the hope that we can achieve cross-party consensus that such national investment is needed. As Mary Mulligan said, the Scottish Government should play a more strategic role in the regeneration of Scotland's town centres.
I, too, congratulate Mary Mulligan on securing the debate and on her excellent speech. The previous two speakers were somewhat pessimistic; in this debate we are celebrating the BID projects that are being developed and particularly the Bathgate BID.
There has been much talk about whether business community expenditure will be a substitute for local authority expenditure. I do not think that will happen. It is clear that a BID is set up through a partnership agreement between a local authority and businesses in order to secure additional services that will improve the business environment.
I am keen to explore the concept in my constituency, where it is more likely than not that the local authority will be enthusiastic about providing additional support for a community that is seen to be doing something for itself and dragging itself up by its bootstraps. It is about helping businesses and communities not just to survive but to thrive and to adapt to ever-changing circumstances. Small towns in particular need to be much more innovative in encouraging more specialist businesses, given the threats from supermarkets and out-of-town malls to which people drive.
Empty businesses and shops in our towns are an eyesore that we have all experienced. In some small towns in my area 10 to 15 per cent of properties lie derelict, which has a severe effect on morale and makes towns less attractive not only to investors but to people who might go to live there.
I hope that the pilot BIDs will be extremely successful. BIDs were first set up in Canada in 1973 and there are now 1,400 BIDs throughout the world, so I see no reason why the approach should not be successful in Scotland.
I understand Mr Brown's point about a mandatory levy. However, if everyone gains, everyone should contribute. If businesses will have an increased footfall and do more trade, it is not unreasonable to expect them to contribute after the democratic process has taken place.
My sister lives in Canada and I have witnessed BIDs in operation there. BIDs can install closed-circuit television cameras. I know that we want local authorities to provide cameras, but they do not always have the money and doing so is not necessarily their top priority. A wee nudge might push them in the right direction, which is all to the good. BIDs can remove graffiti, reduce vandalism, provide benches, put up hanging baskets and keep places spruce and nicely painted. Many things can be done to make the public realm more attractive and to attract people into a town, which will help it to thrive. BIDs can help to make a town not just vibrant and viable, but safer. There is an important opportunity to create civic pride by reducing empty properties and unemployment.
Mary Mulligan was right to commend Ian Davison Porter. He said:
"Having a collective vision and a strong partnership, particularly one where the private sector has real input and responsibility, can help provide the drive and energy needed to deliver projects over an extended period of time and ultimately deliver a viable and vibrant town which benefits everyone."
I support that.
I hope that the Scottish Government will re-examine the £15,000 ceiling, which Mary Mulligan mentioned. We should try to enhance conditions and we should try to reduce the timeframe for BIDs. Frankly, 18 months to two years is too long to go through the process—people want to see results much more quickly. Along with the small business bonus scheme, BIDs could go a long way towards helping to restore some of our small towns.
I add my congratulations to Mary Mulligan on securing the debate and introducing the subject in an expert manner. It is excellent that she also managed to introduce some humour into such a difficult concept.
I join Mary Mulligan in welcoming the success of the Bathgate business improvement district. It is no mean outcome. Having considered the issue in the context of the essential Edinburgh BID, I think that it was an absolute triumph to reach the level of endorsement that Bathgate managed to achieve. It is a real endorsement of the hard graft that clearly went in over months in support of the proposal.
The achievement lay not just in winning the final vote, but in ensuring that the contents of the proposal hit the issues that local businesses wanted to be acted upon. That is a crucial lesson. If we are to get the proposals right, they need to be worked up. The businesses that will be affected all need to be brought to the table. People's views need to be taken on board and acted upon. I very much welcome the experience that we have gained thanks to the success of the Bathgate vote. It will be very good to see how the project rolls out in practice. I hope that, over the coming months and years, Mary Mulligan will be able to talk about the lessons that have been learned as the project beds down and begins to deliver results.
Mary Mulligan's motion is clever in many ways. In particular, its last sentence suggests that
"other Scottish towns may follow in Bathgate's footsteps."
I am sure that, in using the word "towns", Mary means cities as well—including Edinburgh.
I support the mood around the chamber on the key issue of urban regeneration in towns that have been left behind in the fantastic economic progress that we have experienced over the past few years, but there are challenges in our cities, too. Even in Edinburgh, there is a real danger in our being complacent about the quality of the infrastructure of the city centre. Businesses in Edinburgh feel strongly that we need a high-quality public environment and high-quality service delivery. That is a key driver behind the essential Edinburgh project. It involves some of the best-known major companies and retailers in the city, as well as many independent supporters.
We, too, have an ambition like the ambition that Mary Mulligan outlined for Bathgate: to ensure that the city centre meets its full potential as a workplace, as a place to shop and as a place to do business. That requires high-quality services that meet businesses' needs. That is where the consultation process—and the fact that it is business led—is so crucial.
I very much welcome the City of Edinburgh Council's commitment to essential Edinburgh and to continuing to provide baseline services at similar or higher levels. That is a very good message—I refer to the fears that Gavin Brown expressed. The context is one in which current services will be continued or developed, and the BID process will bring additional quality and services on top of that. According to the estimates that I have been given, the project is to last five years, and the levy alone should raise just under £1 million a year. That is not an insignificant amount of money. If it is targeted properly, it could deliver real improvements for business in our city.
I strongly agree with the comments that Mary Mulligan and Kenny Gibson made about getting the level of support right at the start. The successful project in Bathgate has drawn such a high level of support only through people taking their time, talking to businesses and ensuring that the proposal is right. I hope that, in his winding-up speech—or, if not, at a future date—the minister will think about upping the £15,000 ceiling. The message that I have received from people in Edinburgh is that it is not enough to get the right sort of high-quality bids; it is a matter of levering in substantial additional private sector investment. That can be achieved only if projects are put together properly and if they can engage all the key players.
I very much welcome Mary Mulligan's motion. I hope that we will hear more from the Scottish Government on the subject in the future, and that it has been listening to the tone of the debate and to the range of speeches this evening. There is a lot more mileage in the BID process, but it needs to be funded properly.
I join other members in congratulating Bathgate on its success and Mary Mulligan on securing the debate.
I was a deputy finance minister for a while, and I was responsible for part of the early work on developing the BID policy. I was always attracted to the idea of BIDs because of the international experience, to which Kenny Gibson referred, and because of the capacity of BIDs to improve town and city centres, as other members have described. The good thing about BIDs is that they are a co-operative enterprise. They do not happen without the consent of the local business community and they provide it with more power and influence over its environment. BIDs add value to that environment, and therefore add value to trading and the local economy as a whole. Gavin Brown made an important point when he said that the finance raised by the BID process should be additional to the expenditure that the local authority would otherwise have incurred. If that is not the case, we will simply overtax business to replace current expenditure.
The acid test for the process was always going to be whether the business community voted for it. When I was considering the early policy on BIDs, it was not clear that that would be the case in all circumstances. However, that was a good thing, because it meant that the business community could exercise power over the situation. Equally, if businesses did vote for BIDs, it would liberate them to do more in support of their communities.
I was pleased that Inverness was the second area—but the first city—in Scotland to vote for a BID, which it did on 14 March, with a 75 per cent endorsement by the business community. That BID will see work in a number of themed areas, such as a safer Inverness, a cleaner Inverness, a more accessible Inverness and a more active Inverness. I wish the city well in that regard.
However, I also have some concerns, which reflect points that other members have touched on. Inverness was previously eligible for the cities growth fund, which contributed significantly to city centre regeneration. The Government was wrong to end ring fencing of that fund, although it had a right to do so. The local council is yet to decide what to put in its place. It would be wholly wrong, just when the business community is prepared to puts its hand deeper into its pocket for extra funds for the city centre, if the council reduced the previous commitments that were enabled through the fund. I hope that that will not happen. Indeed, I support what Kenny Gibson said, and hope that local authorities will add to the fund and not in any way diminish support. There is a lesson there for the Government.
Another member made the point that it is important that the Government does not see what I hope will be increasing acceptance of BIDs as a reason to withdraw in any way from city or town centre regeneration. Indeed, I hope that the opposite will be the case, and that the Government will advance a town centre regeneration fund, which my party advocated at the previous election. Many other areas have expressed interest in town centre regeneration, including, in my region, Oban, Dunoon, Wick, Thurso, Tain, Dingwall and Elgin. Fort William has expressed particular interest in pursuing town centre regeneration. I hope that it will have that opportunity.
Having seen the experience of Inverness in preparing a bid, and knowing the challenge that that presented—a challenge that I am glad to say has been successfully overcome—I endorse the point that Kenny Gibson, Mary Mulligan and Sarah Boyack made about the £15,000 threshold. It is simply not enough adequately to support communities in preparing and making a success of their proposals. I hope that that will be revisited by the Government.
I agree with all members about Mary Mulligan—she deserves great credit for securing the debate. It is a timely debate, and it has been a measured one, creating much greater awareness about the BID concept and contributing to encouraging it to evolve.
First and foremost, however, I congratulate the Bathgate BID team on getting the second highest ever approval rating for a BID. It sold the idea brilliantly, and in doing so gained endorsement and commitment, loading the dice massively in favour of not only the Bathgate BID but the concept of BIDs throughout Scotland. I am delighted that a traditional Scottish town such as Bathgate has proved that it can lead the way.
I am also delighted to recognise that the regeneration of local economies can stimulate greater partnership working among the public sector, the private sector and the voluntary sector. I want to fold them all in at some point, because an important thing is happening with our family businesses—there is a high failure rate at the point of generational change.
As others have said, the debate is not just about Bathgate. We have a solid framework of BIDs across Scotland, backed by practical and financial support. BIDs include Inverness city centre and Clackmannanshire business park. There is an interesting new sense of community collaboration in Clackmannanshire, where people are working together to cut operating costs. In both places, the BIDs are pioneering the involvement of property owners. More ballots are in the pipeline: in Falkirk and Edinburgh in May; and in Glasgow, Alloa and Dunfermline later in 2008. I know that the enthusiasm will grow further.
I take Elaine Murray's point to an extent—the small business bonus will have a material impact. I just got my 80 per cent reduction, which has made it much easier to put my cost centre code on the papers and push things through. That money has now been released, and it is important that we have removed the impression that there could be any double taxation in the process.
The message is out that BIDs are moving. We need to gear up to work with Ian Davison Porter, the project director of business improvement districts Scotland, to broadcast the fact that the process is working, and if more business districts work together to improve themselves, we will take it even further. I want BIDs to boost the local economy, create more employment, create a feel-good factor, reinvent civic pride and trust locally and boost tourism. I also want them to boost mentoring, with people helping other businesses to come forward. The towns that Peter Peacock mentioned are dear to my heart. They are up for more collaboration and also for cross-selling one another. People who visit one town should be encouraged to visit others.
BIDs give us the welcome prospect of seeing our town centres regenerate, with a particularly strong role for local firms that can help Scottish towns to recover their distinctiveness and personality, making them more compelling to visit and revisit. I know that that will happen because I have been impressed by the proposers' commitment. They are breaking new ground and are building a better future with ambition and with a degree of altruism, which will be rewarded by each of their individual towns being made more pleasant, more relevant and more rewarding for their customers.
There is a sense of liberation, with people getting a chance to use their ingenuity. The process proves Margaret Wheatley's theory that when people have a unifying goal, reinvent trust and co-operate and there is a sensible element of personal enlightened self-interest, miracles can happen. Good results can become the norm, there can be investment flow, and inhibitors can be overcome.
What more can be done? Town centre management is evolving, and we are seeing its democratisation in Falkirk, Edinburgh and Inverness. Many more stakeholders are becoming involved, and local authorities are now sharing the burden with others. There are many other examples. We recently listed all the entities that deliver services to, or draw revenues from, Argyll and Bute: we reached 78, and there are more to come. We need to get more of them involved in helping us with this work.
This is not all about Government putting money into projects, although that is important. We are not being dogmatic about the money—we will keep the situation under review, but we want to ensure that we leverage in the investment. I take Elaine Murray's point that lower business rates are a massive help, but we must also facilitate investment, attract regeneration money, enable the intelligent use of public sector assets, attract the private sector and bring in the public sector. In that process, government should become more effective and more focused.
There has been a big dividend for me in being involved in BIDs and thinking about them. The work that we have done to activate the industry sectors gives me the view that we have been working with business improvement sectors in the construction industry, the drinks industry, life sciences, textiles, tourism and so on. We now see the doubling up of physical business improvement districts, improvement sectors and more effective government. As a result, we are starting to move to a better place and a higher level where the Government's economic strategy on building Scotland's brand and improving the life chances of the people of Scotland becomes a reality. That is happening because the people are involved in the process and because local government, in particular, is now fully involved and integrated in it through the single outcome agreements. The fact is that much more of a team game is happening, involving Government, the enterprise agencies, local government, the public sector more widely, the private sector and the voluntary sector. That will massively increase our chances of making things happen—and of making them happen better.
I return to my point about family business. Martin Stepek of the Scottish Family Business Association tells us that 70 per cent of family businesses do not survive the generational leap. We want to ensure that we are creating a climate in which their survival is more likely, with support from the social enterprises. We want to build on the work that the councils, businesses and communities are doing and take that forward.
The timing of the debate is great. The small business bonus is a help. This week, I had a wonderful example of a one-man BID. Andy Willox, the Scottish policy convener of the Federation of Small Businesses, spoke about the saving that he was making from the small business bonus: this year, he will invest in double glazing, and next year he will invest in a better heating system. It would be very easy to flag him in.
For me, the issue is that we must move on. The stasis in the fitness landscape is a recipe for extinction. BIDs offer us a way to adapt, innovate, co-operate and align our communities, businesses and high streets with the needs of their customers. I very much welcome them.
Meeting closed at 17:45.