THERE was a mixed response to the report from the Scottish Government’s Advisory Group on Economic Recovery.
The Scottish Greens said it lacked urgency, with the party’s co-leader Patrick Harvie saying ministers would need to “go further and faster than the recommendations here”.
Though he welcomed the call for a jobs guarantee.
“Young people must be guaranteed not just a job, but a secure and well-paid role in building a greener Scotland,” he said.
The LibDems called it a “serious piece of work”.
Though Willie Rennie accused it of a “disappointing lack of ambition”.
“In particular introducing a universal basic income would be an effective way to ensure that all of those who have fallen through the cracks in the existing coronavirus support packages are able to put food on the table,” he said.
READ MORE: Scotland needs more powers to tackle coronavirus crisis, report says
Tracy Black, the director of CBI Scotland, welcomed much of the report, including recommendations to invest in the digital infrastructure, and the rolling out of the R-100 programme to get broadband available to every house in the country.
However, she sounded a note of caution on a job guarantee for 16 to 25-year-olds.
“Businesses will need to see further detail on proposals like a Scottish Jobs Guarantee to ensure they are practical, transparent and make best use of private sector expertise,” she said.
Andrew McRae, from the Federation of Scottish Business said the recommendations in the Higgins report would help “jump-start the Scottish economy”.
He said: “The focus on sustaining and generating jobs is the right call if we want to prevent a lost generation – but that can only happen in partnership with small businesses. This is especially true in remote communities where small businesses generate over half of private sector employment.”
He said there needed to be a swift response from ministers.
Willie Watt, who is the chair-designate of the Scottish National Investment Bank, said the bank would play its part in Scotland’s economic recovery.
“The Bank will be a long-term patient investor, providing capital which supports a sustained recovery.
“The Bank’s mission-led approach will help tackle the key themes highlighted in the report, such as reducing inequality and the transition to a net-zero economy.
“We look forward to engaging with the report’s recommendations.”
Friends of the Earth Scotland campaigner Caroline Rance was unhappy with the recommendations.
Rance – who was part of a protest outside the Scottish Government’s St Andrew’s House HQ – said there was little sign “of new thinking or concrete measures that will challenge the inequalities, poverty and climate pollution in Scotland.
“A return to the way things were before coronavirus is both unrealistic and unwanted,” she said.
Meanwhile, Anne McCall, the director of RSPB Scotland, backed the report’s call to prioritise investment in the natural environment.
She said: “We now urge the Scottish Government to respond positively and bring forward a nature-based investment and policy package.”
Kate Still, director of The Prince’s Trust in Scotland, said they were pleased to see young people at the heart of the report: “The job crisis will impact most on our young people with potentially lifelong damage to their future prospects.”
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