Question reference: S4W-00680
- Asked by: Margaret McDougall, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 10 June 2011
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Current status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2011
Question
To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) discussions, (b) correspondence and (c) meetings it has had with GlaxoSmithKline regarding the location of its proposed new plant.
Answer
Andrew Witty, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), confirmed in a letter to the First Minister on 9 May 2011 that Scotland was being considered as a location for its new biopharmaceutical manufacturing plant. The Scottish Government has been advised by GSK that the selection process and timelines will be shared by the company in early July 2011. At present, officials are collating general materials to support a Scottish proposition to attract this new investment.
The Scottish Government will work closely with key stakeholders once the criteria is received to develop a bespoke and compelling Scottish proposal. GSK is a strategically important investor in Scotland and Scottish Development International meet regularly with the company to maximise the economic benefits of its existing investments in Scotland as well as to identify and develop convincing propositions for potential new opportunities, including the proposed new biopharmaceutical manufacturing plant.