Chamber and committees

Scotland’s Economic Strategy (SES) is directed towards achieving the Scottish Government’s central purpose of creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth. Progress is measured through the national indicators and purpose targets contained in the National Performance Framework (NPF).

The NPF was updated in March 2016 with additional indicators to reflect the strategic approach of the SES, including new measures of natural capital, access to local greenspace, underemployment, gender pay differences and payment of the living wage. The methodology used to monitor progress towards the productivity and solidarity targets was also updated, to allow for a better assessment of progress towards the productivity and inequality ambitions contained in the SES.

Scotland’s Economic Strategy sets out the Scottish Government’s strategic approach to creating a more prosperous and fairer nation. It is directed towards achieving the Scottish Government’s central purpose of creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth.

The annual ‘Programme for Government’, published on the Scottish Government’s website, sets out the policies, actions and legislation that the Scottish Government will take forward to deliver its core purpose.

Progress towards the objectives of Scotland’s Economic Strategy is monitored through the national indicators and purpose targets contained in the National Performance Framework, and is reported on Scotland Performs, the Scottish Government’s online reporting tool.

The Fair Work Convention was established in April 2015, details of its membership, remit and the Fair Work Framework published in March 2016 are available on its website at: http://www.fairworkconvention.scot/index.html.

The Fair Work Convention is an independent body and the decision to publish minutes will be decided by the convention. It has produced a Fair Work Framework for Scotland and this is available on the convention's website.

Last year, the First Minister set up the Energy Jobs Task Force, which has already helped to support more than 2,500 individuals and 100 employers through the current downturn, and will continue to support the industry to improve collaboration, co-operation and innovation. A fourth Patnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) event, providing Employment Support, will take place at Robert Gordon University on 22 June 2016. An enhanced Adopt an Apprentice scheme was also launched by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) on 16 February 2015. SDS has helped secure re-employment and provides support for Modern Apprentices made redundant in the oil and gas sector through this scheme.

The Taskforce has, at the request of its industry members, taken a longer-term look at the structural challenges of the industry. This has led to a number of initiatives that will lay the foundations for improvements across a wide range of action areas to support supply chain best practice, increase standardisation, enhance leadership, encourage more collaborative behaviours among different parts of the industry and drive cost efficiencies. This has led to a number of initiatives including:

A ground breaking cross-sector Shared Principles and Values event, attended by more than 70 industry leaders in Aberdeen took place last May. A follow up event took place in May 2016, where 74 senior oil and gas leaders met to drive forward behavioural changes and improve ways of working to maximise opportunities for Scotland’s oil and gas sector. The event aimed to challenge existing behaviours and break down the barriers to change; ensuring companies are equipped to deal with issues affecting them in the short term, but also helping to protect skills and talent to maximise future growth opportunities.

Launch of tactics to mitigate risk or impact of redundancy guidance on 20 May which provides a hierarchy of options before employers resort to downsizing workforce has been published, including - making savings elsewhere, sabbaticals, reduced hours, job sharing, job loans. This has been issued to companies via the OGUK HR Forum, SDS, Scottish Enterprise and the Energy Jobs Task Force network.

Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise are providing practical assistance to the supply chain and have run 6 Resilience in Oil and Gas Events welcoming 217 delegates from 144 companies to hear from experts on strategy, operations, finance and market resilience.

Elevator Fresh Starts Business Start Up support programme has provided support for 37 new businesses in North East originating from initial contact at PACE events, which includes intensive support from experienced mentors

A Sales Leadership event was held in Aberdeen on 26 Feb 16, attracting 53 delegates – with the objective of equipping business leaders with responsibility for sales to take a strategic overview of their sales process to locate and win profitable business.

The second cohort of 9 business leaders has recently completed a new Executive Masterclass Development Programme, to develop strategic leadership skills, bringing the number to 18 in total over the two cohorts since July 2015.

Introduction of a fully funded adapted Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service (SMAS) manufacturing review open to all Oil and Gas businesses, to increase the chances of survival and build operational resilience. In addition SMAS is leading a number of Learning Journeys for example the Siemens factory in UK and a visit to Germany – these included 8 companies from the oil and gas sector. Best practice visits have also taken place to Optos and Scotvalves with a total of 6 oil and gas supply chain companies involved in these.

Scottish Enterprise has allocated £10m of funding to support Oil and Gas companies at enhanced levels for Innovation and Research and Development, offering support at up to 70% dependent on the size of the business to further de-risk innovative projects. This also includes an ‘innovation professional for hire’ programme to help businesses enhance their innovation capability.

Additionally Resilience Review Support which was announced in February, has established a pool of around 35 industry specialists to support companies.

Scotland Performs monitors and reports on progress against the Scottish Government's purpose targets and national indicators.

Data on Scotland's productivity performance is currently available for years up to and including 2014. Data on progress towards the productivity purpose target up to 2014 is published at the following address:

http://www.gov.scot/About/Performance/scotPerforms/purposetargets/productivity

There are no immediate plans to establish a Scottish Business Development Bank.

I refer to the response to S4W-30114 on 26 February 2016 by John Swinney, then Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth.

Our approach, given the UK Government accounting arrangements within which we are required to work, is to enhance the remit of the Scottish Investment Bank (SIB) and for Scottish Enterprise to offer a wider range of business investment approaches, addressing some of the marketplace gaps to improve the supply of funding.

The additional activity could include providing support to a broader number and range of businesses, offering and enabling loans, and potentially guarantees, alongside equity products and providing an enhanced financial readiness service.

£21.5 million of financial transactions funding has been allocated to Scottish Enterprise in 2016-17 to help in developing the SIB to meet its new objectives.

The Scottish Investment Bank is a division within Scottish Enterprise and does not have a separate board.

This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise. I will arrange for the Chief Executive to write to you with the information requested.

I have today, on 15 June, published the terms of reference for the review and copies are available in the Scottish Parliament’s Information Centre (bib number 58005). The review and recommendations will focus on achieving three main aims: achieving the government’s ambitions as set out in Scotland’s Economic Strategy and National Performance Framework; ensuring our economic and skills interventions are shaped by users’ needs; and ensuring that delivery continuously reflects best practice.

The review will begin within the next week. I will invite ministerial group members by the end of this week, with a view to meeting by the end of June 2016. We will then issue a call for evidence and invite a wide range of stakeholders to engage in the most appropriate manner such that the review can be published by the end of the summer.

The Scottish Government continues to monitor the impact that low oil prices is having on the oil and gas industry and its wider supply chain. This was discussed at the energy jobs taskforce meeting on the 23 March 2016, with the next meeting taking place on 16 June 2016. The state of the economy report from the chief economist, published on 3 June 2016, provides an update on the oil and gas sector. A link to the report can be found at: http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Economy/state-economy/latestSofE.

The Scottish Government recognises the severe challenges facing the oil and gas industry, which is why our focus is on what we can do to support the industry and the work force.

We continue to do all that we can within devolved powers to help the sector. In 2015, we set up the Energy Jobs Taskforce, which has already helped to support more than 2,500 individuals and 100 employers through the current downturn, and will continue to support the industry to improve collaboration, co-operation and innovation. We also announced the £12 million transition training fund this year, around 650 individuals have registered for support and the fund has already confirmed funding for nearly 100 individuals to support their redeployment through retraining or further education.