– in the Scottish Parliament at on 23 February 2017.
4. To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with the Scottish growth scheme. (S5O-00692)
The Scottish Government is continuing to progress its work with partners on the development and delivery of the new Scottish growth scheme, which will provide up to £500 million over three years of investment guarantees and some loans. This work is progressing to deliver the most effective scheme possible.
The £500 million Scottish growth scheme is described in the Scottish National Party’s programme for government as a scheme to
“provide up to £500 million ... of investment guarantees, and some loans”, as the cabinet secretary said. I understand that funding for the scheme will be demand led, but if there is any likelihood of loans being made in the next financial year, funding should be allocated in the budget. Given that, will the cabinet secretary say where in the budget we can find the additional funding for loans to be made under the growth scheme? Is the funding in the enterprise budget, or is no funding available for the scheme?
I am sorry; I was not able to hear everything that the member said, because of the noise in the chamber. I think that he asked whether some of the funding that might be available through the growth scheme should instead be available in the budget. The budget, as my colleague Derek Mackay has set out, has in it—including the allocations to enterprise agencies—the ability to make grants and loans available to businesses if necessary.
This is an additional £500 million. As the member said, the scheme is demand led, and we are currently trying to ensure that we have an exact fix on where demand is most likely to come from and how we can meet demand.
The scheme is a response to the situation that we find ourselves in, with Brexit coming through and a United Kingdom Government that is refusing to attach a high priority to some of the most important sectors in Scotland. The scheme is a positive response in that regard, and for that reason I would have thought that there would be some support or welcome from the Conservative benches for an important measure to help businesses in Scotland.
That will entirely depend on the nature of the applications that come forward and the loans and investment guarantees that we are able to make.
Jackie Baillie said that we lag behind the UK on some measures. We are also in advance of the UK on many measures, such as female employment and youth employment. She does not mention that at all in the chamber, but it is as well to acknowledge it.
The Scottish growth scheme is designed to ensure that we increase job opportunities and allow companies that are currently struggling for finance to grow, to provide more employment and add growth in the Scottish economy. That is the purpose of the scheme. It would be useful if the Labour Party said that it supported at least the principle of the scheme.