Meeting of the Parliament 09 June 2026 [Draft]
I gave Mr Hoy the opportunity to apologise for Liz Truss, but I notice that he chose not to do so, which is something that I have no doubt will sit heavily on the minds of voters across Scotland in the coming weeks. How dare a member of the Conservative Party—the party responsible for the energy profits levy and for the failed environmental risk assessment that blocked the Rosebank project from being taken forward—come to this chamber and blame anyone else for that party’s actions? The reality is that Scotland’s oil and gas industry has contributed nearly £400 billion to his UK Treasury, and people have lost their jobs despite that. That is on him and his party, and nobody else’s.
The people in the generation I have spoken of have been buffeted by events and they have been promised change from Westminster throughout their adult lives, but they have never seen it delivered. Let me be clear that, for as long as the great levers of any state that control trade, migration, energy, tax and employment law are held by others far removed from Scotland’s reach, we will always be held back from being able to deliver the full potential that a growing economy can deliver and that our nation deserves.
That becomes ever more frustrating when we consider just how strong our foundations are. Let us be in no doubt that Scotland starts from a position of strength. Our nation is awash with investment and innovation, from the SaxaVord spaceport sat atop the very tip of the Shetland isles in Unst to the Center Parcs development down south by Hawick, and from the world-leading subsea oil and gas and renewables engineering of Aberdeen in the east to the glory of Scotland’s malts in the Western Isles. Across Edinburgh and Glasgow lie financial institutions that are the envy of many, and that is before we spread our view out across our land in celebration of our food, farming and fishing. Indeed, all of us in the chamber—although perhaps not Mr Hoy—could rightly celebrate success stories from each of our constituencies time and time again. We all know them: the local businesses with the global connections and the global brands.
The task now is to use the powers that we have to build on those underlying strengths and channel them into growth that the Scottish public can feel. The next phase of this Government’s delivery must be about pace, outcomes and reforms. As I have said, Scotland does not lack assets or ambitions, but we know that progress is all too often slowed by the complexity of the state and fragmented support systems that act as a barrier. Our job now is to cut through that complexity, accelerate delivery and align the Government, public bodies and partners behind the shared goal of higher sustainable growth that is felt in people’s day-to-day lives.
First, we must continue to unlock investment. We all know that Scotland continues to have the highest levels of foreign direct investment outside London. We all know that Scotland is a high-confidence, stable and attractive environment for many investors. We all know that it was the Scottish Government that put those conditions in place. However, we can, and we must, go further to make Scotland the best place in the United Kingdom to do business, and to create an environment where we can make it easier to turn investor interest into real projects and real jobs. Our major projects office will help to make that vision a reality.
Secondly, we must boost productivity. If we are serious about attracting investment, about being the best place on these isles to do business and about competing internationally, we must continue to invest in making sure that the workforce of today is ready for the work of tomorrow, and skills are key to boosting productivity. That means working with our schools, colleges, universities, research institutions and businesses to ensure that our young people, those who are out of work and, indeed, those who are looking for a change know exactly what skills they need to get on in life, and where best to get them.
However, skills are only part of the story, because they are worth having only if there is somewhere to use them—