Chamber and committees

I welcome the opportunity to update the Parliament on progress and further investment in two significant projects—Our Union Street in Aberdeen and the People’s Palace in Glasgow—both of which will support wider regeneration of their local communities. Our commitments on those projects, which were set out in our manifesto, form part of our commitments for our first 100 days. I will lead on the statement, in which I will reflect on both the Our Union Street project and—on behalf of the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic—the People’s Palace commitment, which sits in the culture portfolio.

Although the two projects are located in different cities, they both play an important role in driving place-based regeneration and supporting the physical, economic and social renewal of local communities. Through our regeneration strategy and targeted investment programmes, we are supporting thriving places and regions, which are central to Scotland’s long-term economic success. That is reflected in our commitment of up to £52 million in the 2026-27 budget to accelerate regeneration across the country.

I am pleased to confirm that the Scottish Government will provide up to an additional £600,000 for the Our Union Street campaign, building on our existing funding of £400,000. That will bring total investment of up to £1 million. That funding will complement wider Scottish Government investment in the north-east, including £125 million over 10 years through the Aberdeen city region deal and £13.4 million in regeneration capital investment since 2014.

Union Street has long been the heart of Aberdeen and, like many town and city centres, it has faced significant challenges in recent years. In response, in 2023, local businesses and communities came together to form Our Union Street, a volunteer-led movement aimed at tackling vacancies, improving the streetscape, supporting new businesses and rebuilding civic pride. A defining feature of that initiative has been its strong community engagement. More than 70 local groups were engaged with, more than 500 people attended a major public meeting, and more than 10,000 ideas were generated to help to shape the future of the street.

Three years on, there has been a reduction in the number of vacant units. With support from our £400,000 of investment to date, the project has delivered tangible outcomes, including shop-front improvements, cleaning and maintenance, volunteer mobilisation and stronger partnership working with local organisations and businesses. The Our Union Street team has worked closely with landlords and agents to bring vacant units back into use. Simple interventions, such as cleaning empty premises, have helped to attract new tenants and have created opportunities for new hospitality and commercial activity. There have also been visible improvements to the street itself, including exhibits and makeovers of vacant units that have drawn people back into the centre. I was particularly impressed by the efforts to work with local artists, including the graffiti grannies, a local street art group of over-60s that not only helps to tackle social isolation but has also reinvigorated neighbourhoods with local art.

Our investment has supported innovative digital solutions in reimagining the city. In particular, the introduction of a smartphone app is helping people to engage with the city centre in new ways. Launched last month, the app acts as a guide to local events, gives users exclusive deals at independent shops and has interactive trails uncovering Aberdeen’s lesser-known history and heritage.

Those practical interventions are making a real difference on the ground. Increased occupancy and footfall have helped to reinforce confidence in the city centre as a place to live, work and invest. My officials have already met the Our Union Street team and Aberdeen City Council to discuss delivery of the commitment, and we will ensure that the additional funding builds on existing investment and momentum in revitalising the city centre.

Crucially, the project can complement further action led by the Aberdeen Inspired business improvement district, which is another key player in driving the economic and cultural vibrancy of Aberdeen city centre through initiatives such as the Nuart Aberdeen art festival and the biannual Aberdeen restaurant weeks. In parallel, initiatives such as the award-winning upper floors project, which is being delivered by Aberdeen City Council and the Aberdeen Inspired BID, are addressing long-standing challenges by converting underused upper floor spaces into homes, workplaces and creative hubs. Together, those efforts are helping to revitalise Union Street and breathe new life into Aberdeen’s city centre. They reflect a town centre first approach that we are committed to supporting across Scotland. The work of Our Union Street is something that others can look to and learn from.

Presiding Officer, the additional investment in Our Union Street is about more than physical change. It also sends a clear message that Aberdeen city centre is open for business and committed to attracting investment, talent and new enterprises. It is about supporting communities, strengthening the local economy and fostering a strong sense of place. Our Union Street has already played a key role in that progress and I look forward to seeing what more can be achieved.

I turn to the People’s Palace and winter gardens project, which aims to save a cornerstone of Glasgow’s cultural heritage. The People’s Palace opened in 1898 at the iconic Glasgow Green, with a pioneering vision to create a cultural, educational and recreational community space for the working-class residents of the east end.

At the heart of the People’s Palace redevelopment project is an ambitious vision for the local communities in the east end of Glasgow. The project will use a community-led approach to create a museum by the people, for the people. Inclusion, access and participation will be increased through that approach, and the project will focus on local and national priorities including supporting learning, wellbeing, skills development and net zero. It will reimagine the People’s Palace to create one of the world’s most socially engaged and internationally significant local museums.

The restoration project will also demonstrate the benefits of reusing and adapting historic buildings to ensure that they can thrive again and support the wellbeing of Scotland’s people and the economy. A significantly improved and accessible cultural venue will also make the local area a better place to live and will support local businesses and jobs. It will create new employment opportunities during the redevelopment and beyond.

The project aims to build on the success of the redeveloped Burrell Collection, which generated more than £21 million in economic value in its first year of reopening, and almost £25 million in its second year. It is clear that the renewed People’s Palace will play a pivotal placemaking role in one of Glasgow’s most deprived neighbourhoods. However, the grade-A listed museum is now at risk of permanent closure, and we must ensure that that does not happen. That is why I am pleased to confirm that the Scottish Government will establish a partnership group to support the redevelopment of the People’s Palace, recognising its status as a building of national cultural and historic significance and its role in the regeneration of Glasgow’s east end.

The group will bring together key partners, including Historic Environment Scotland, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Glasgow Life, Museums Galleries Scotland and Scottish Enterprise, alongside wider sectoral expertise, to work collaboratively with Glasgow City Council in progressing the refurbishment of the People’s Palace and winter gardens. The partnership group will facilitate the sharing of expertise, support the achievement of value for money for the public purse and seek to agree a viable and deliverable funding package, including appropriate match-funding arrangements.

Investing in Our Union Street and the People’s Palace demonstrates our clear commitment to regeneration that is locally led, nationally supported and focused on delivering real change. By investing in our places, we are investing in people, opportunity and long-term prosperity. I am confident that, together, we will continue to build stronger, more resilient communities across Scotland.

Yi-pei Chou Turvey raises an important point about non-domestic rates—in fairness, Mr Kerr did so as well. We recognise some of the challenges that have arisen following the revaluation, which was reflected in the package of reliefs that was brought forward as part of the budget process. From memory, that package now totals in excess of £870 million—that is an £870 million tax cut from this Government to businesses.

However, we recognise that there is more work to do, and we are committed to engaging constructively, including in the process of reviewing our rates system. It is open to all members to make representations to the Scottish Government on those matters ahead of the annual budget process.

For the avoidance of doubt, the total investment is up to £1 million. The amount will be determined through engagement with Our Union Street to ensure that effective project management systems are in place to maximise the impact of the funding. We have committed to delivering up to £1 million—that is on the table for the Our Union Street campaign.

Although the biggest levers for boosting economic growth remain reserved to Westminster, the Scottish Government is creating conditions for growth and thriving businesses here in Scotland. We are streamlining regulatory processes for business while investing in skills, employability and housing, enabling firms to expand and create jobs. We back innovative and high-growth businesses through programmes such as Techscaler, supporting the creation and scaling of tech start-ups. Scotland remains the top United Kingdom foreign direct investment location outside of London, recently securing investments such as Ryanair’s £40 million investment at Prestwick airport, creating 450 jobs, and the £445 million Center Parcs investment in Hawick, supporting 1,300 jobs.

I recognise the concerns that have been expressed by Rachael Hamilton on behalf of businesses in her constituency. I assure her that the Government takes those matters seriously. The Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport and I will engage closely with our colleague the Minister for Public Finance on those matters. Decisions on non-domestic rates in relation to reliefs and poundage are considered, as would be expected, as part of the annual budget process, so there is an opportunity for members from across the chamber to make representations to the Government.

I assure Rachael Hamilton that we are cognisant of the concerns that have been raised and that we are committed to constructive engagement, particularly, as I said in my previous answer, ahead of the next revaluation.

I thank Calum Kerr for raising those matters pertaining to non-domestic rates. The small business bonus scheme has garnered much support in the business community. The Federation of Small Businesses in particular has been very forthright in advocating on its behalf. All of us, in our roles as constituency and regional MSPs, will be able to identify many businesses in our town centres, villages and high streets that benefit from the SBBS. As Calum Kerr highlighted, it benefits around 100,000 businesses across Scotland.

More broadly, we recognise that specific concerns have been raised about non-domestic rates by a range of sectors, particularly hospitality. We are committed to engaging constructively, and we will soon undertake a comprehensive review of non-domestic rates, which builds on our commitment to examine the impact and configuration of all our reliefs in advance of the next revaluation on 1 April 2029.

Duncan Massey raises an important point. The Scottish Government convened a round-table meeting with businesses and affected sectors earlier this year. My predecessor wrote to the UK Government prior to dissolution. He did not receive a reply so, this morning, I wrote to the minister of state, and I hope to meet him in the coming weeks. I give the undertaking to the Parliament that, when I do, I will raise not just the issues that have been brought to the chamber this afternoon but the many other representations that I have received on the matter. I am happy to keep Duncan Massey up to date in that regard.

The Scottish Government supports the aim of the carbon border adjustment mechanisms, or CBAMs, to reduce carbon leakage. However, we recognise that the mechanisms, whether in the UK or the EU, present challenges for businesses. We have therefore met businesses in affected sectors to understand their concerns, which include compliance costs and competitive disadvantages in exporting to the EU, despite efforts to cut emissions. We have written to UK ministers to share the concerns and have consistently urged the UK Government to link UK and EU emissions trading schemes, which should provide EU CBAM exemptions for Scottish businesses.

I agree absolutely with Alyn Smith and welcome him bringing his tremendous experience and expertise to this chamber, given his previous roles.

We are certainly committed to engaging constructively with the UK Government, and I will meet my UK ministerial counterpart in the coming weeks. However, he is absolutely right to highlight the catastrophic damage that Brexit has inflicted on not just the Scottish but the UK economy, and that, of course, the best future for Scotland is as an independent member of the European Union.

I ask the member, in all sincerity, what the Conservative position is with regard to wealth, ownership and matters of equality and distribution. There is a tradition within the Conservative Party, going back to Noel Skelton and Harold Macmillan, of thinking about these things deeply and seriously. Does the member recognise that profound wealth inequality in society creates not only social ills but profound economic ills?