GROWTH Commission chairman Andrew Wilson today makes a call for new borrowing powers for the Scottish Parliament, to allow it to invest in the country’s future.

In his column for The National, Wilson points out that Holyrood can currently only authorise borrowing for investment that amounts to just over 1% of the Scottish budget.

READ MORE: Why the Scottish Parliament still needs more powers, 20 years on

Wilson says that with North Sea Oil revenues forecast to bring in £8.5 billion in the next five years, it would be “wonderful” if that money could be used to capitalise a Future Fund. However, he adds: “Absent that, the borrowing powers should be extended and used to create a substantial fund focused on long-term policy making and ambition.”

Wilson says the fund could be used to invest in renewable energy technology, connectivity, innovation and science as well as in tackling social problems.