Chamber and committees

Figures published in the Public Contracts Scotland Summary Report https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Guides/Guide_Download.aspx?id=2898

for 2019-2020 reveal that 79% of suppliers awarded contracts in 2019-20 were SMEs, and 63% were SMEs located in Scotland.

Public sector contracts are awarded following open and fair competition and spend fluctuates due to numbers of contracts, their size and nature. So, we do not set targets for SME spend in Scotland. Instead, our approach is to improve access to public contracts for SMEs, the third sector and supported businesses as a key part of meeting our sustainable procurement duty obligations.

This includes developing and signposting sources of support to enable SME and third sector organisations who wish to tender for public contracts to engage with the public sector and to be more successful in winning contracts. For example, we invest in the Supplier Development Programme which assists businesses to become tender ready for public procurement and improves their prospects of success when competing for contracts. Our approach provides practical support to enhance the opportunities for smaller firms that might otherwise not be able to bid.

The Scottish Government’s youth employment strategy, ‘Developing the Young Workforce’, has transformed how employers engage with young people through the education and skills system, improving the work readiness of Scotland’s young people. DYW Regional Groups bring local employers together to take an industry led approach to further improving the relationship between employers and young people in the senior phase at school.

We have appointed Sandy Begbie to advise on the implementation of a Youth Guarantee, which will promote the importance of giving young people the opportunity to access employment, education and training. In line with the Advisory Group on Economic Recovery this work will be led by employers. We engage regularly with a wide range of employers and business organisations and will continue to do this as the Youth Guarantee is implemented.

We have committed to make £60 million available to support the delivery of the Guarantee this year. We recognise the need for this to work alongside the UK Government KickStart scheme. Although we regret that Kickstart was announced with no opportunity for the Scottish Government to contribute or influence it, we are working with DWP to ensure our investment adds value and delivers better outcomes for young people in Scotland.

The Scottish Government will be drawing on corporate finance, governance, economic and business expertise in helping to shape our thinking on our approach to managing ownership stakes in private companies.

During the debate on 12 August I announced that the level of funding to support the Youth Guarantee would be increased by a further £10m to a total of £60m. The precise detail of this £60m cannot be finalised until we have the detail of the implementation plan being developed by Sandy Begbie, as well as fuller detail of how DWP’s KickStart scheme will operate in Scotland. We will work with local authorities and other partners to ensure this investment supports local pressures and is directed towards the most vulnerable and this will include how we best support those in rural communities.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of upskilling and retraining individuals to mitigate the labour market challenges causes by Covid-19. As the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Fair Work and Culture announced on 16 July, we will bring forward proposals for a new transition training fund to help people develop the skills they need to enter into sectors or occupations where we are most confident of a strong recovery, high demand, or tangible job opportunities.

As outlined in the Scottish Government’s Economic Recovery Implementation Plan, a report and recommendations on the management of ownership stakes in private businesses will be put to Ministers in the autumn. This will include a recommendation on the optimum delivery model for the management of such stakes.

Decisions on whether to take ownership stakes in private businesses are taken on a case by case basis.

We are working collaboratively with business organisations on implementation and will publish details shortly.

We are on track to establish the Scottish National Investment Bank later this year. We will capitalise the Bank with £2 billion over ten years, with a primary mission to support the transition to net zero carbon emissions. Work is underway to identify and develop a pipeline of investment propositions in which the Bank could invest, and we will shortly consult on the Scottish Government’s proposed missions for the Bank.

We are working collaboratively with business organisations on implementation and will publish details shortly. We recognise that our economic recovery needs to be a national endeavour. We want to take on board new ideas for sector-led recovery and to create action-focussed partnerships to tackle Scotland’s most pressing economic challenges.