Meeting of the Parliament 30 September 2015
Our vision for Scotland is based on an idea that is embedded in our values and written in our history as a party and a trade union movement, that is, that Scotland succeeds when working people succeed.
For too many people, the link between the prosperity of Scotland and the prosperity of their family has been broken. Families across Scotland naturally look to their Government for answers rather than more excuses. Labour’s values and vision are about an economy that works for all, a politics in which everyone’s voice is heard and a society that is based on common good.
After eight years of inaction, Scotland needs a Government that is focused on the challenges of the future, such as renewal of the link between economic growth and living standards, and new thinking to build a broad-based productivity economy rather than remain a low-productivity economy. Scotland needs a plan to tackle structural challenges in the economy, not an economic strategy that is bereft of targets.
The solution will require new thinking and big reforms to how we use Government. It does not necessarily require big spending, but it does require boldness and big thinking from the current Government.
It is incumbent on Governments of all colours across developed economies to maximise the benefits of globalisation and technological change. That challenge will require renewed focus from the Scottish Government if it is successfully to be navigated. Failure to rise to the challenge will result in rising inequality, increasing reliance on low-skill work and a lack of economic growth, which no member of this Parliament wants to see.