Meeting of the Parliament 13 June 2018
Presiding Officer, the unionists may be able to shut us down at Westminster, but they will not do so in Scotland’s Parliament.
Perhaps we can spend a moment to reflect on Scotland’s current economic performance. We have had a record year for foreign direct investment, rising employment and record low unemployment, goods exports increasing by 12 per cent and the fastest growth in any part of the UK. The Royal Bank of Scotland’s purchasing managers’ index reports that, last month, private sector growth in Scotland was stronger than that in the UK as a whole. High employment, a highly educated population and innovative companies that export around the world, significant natural resources and huge renewable energy potential are just some key fundamentals of the Scottish economy.
If we look at what small, successful, advanced economies across the globe have that we have not, there is only one answer: independence. We have the potential to become one of the most successful countries in the world. First and foremost, the commission’s report is a report to my party, and I warmly welcome the debate that it has generated. It is, after all, about choices. It sets out how the London-centric UK economic model has failed and how we could grow our economy, tackle inequality and match the performance of the world’s most successful advanced economies. It explicitly rejects the UK Government’s austerity policies, because austerity is the price of the union—not of independence.
It is clear to those who have read the report that tackling the inherited financial position can be done with public spending rising. We should remember that the current notional deficit is the product of the current constitutional position and not of Scotland as it could be, and recognise that the UK is increasingly unequal in individual and geographic terms. With all the tools that an independent nation would have, we could improve productivity, participation and population and reduce both poverty and gender inequality. That would be the right thing to do in our own right, and would bring massive economic benefits to our nation. Having just launched the new national performance framework on Monday, we know just how important wellbeing is. The happiest nations in the world are those with the least inequality. It is clear that UK control does not suit our economic or social needs, with population being a case in point.
As Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution, I have set out how—even in devolution—three key areas could make a positive difference now against austerity, Brexit and caps on immigration. However, unionist parties keep telling us to hold on, which is holding Scotland back from what we could truly achieve. A migration policy—[Interruption.]