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Invest in Scotland Portfolio Aims to Attract International Investment
The Scottish Government has announced a new initiative aimed at attracting international investment and boosting the country’s global reputation.
The Scottish Government has launched the ‘Invest in Scotland‘ portfolio, which is expected to be worth around £2 billion to the Scottish economy.
Opportunities to invest in nine projects across Scotland were announced by Economy Secretary Derek Mackay.
The refreshed prospectus aims to attract and secure international investment for a broad range of sectors; spanning both public and private sector projects across the country.
Attracting Investment
Projects highlighted by Invest in Scotland include Edinburgh’s Bioquarter, Dundee Waterfront, Glasgow’s Buchanan Wharf and the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District in Renfrewshire.
Buchanan Wharf, in particular, has received significant boosts recently. Barclays announced it would build a new state-of-the-art workplace for the bank’s technology, functions and operations teams.
The Glasgow centre will be one of a select number of “key global sites” and will accommodate up to 2,500 additional roles – doubling the current Barclays workforce in Scotland and establishing it as one of Glasgow’s largest commercial employers.
This announcement follows recent initiatives to improve Scotland’s reputation and appeal on a global scale. The £661 million Data-Driven Innovation initiative is another pioneering endeavour aimed at boosting Scotland’s global reputation. The Initiative is a key component of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, which was formally announced in August.
The £1.3 billion initiative aims to drive growth across the region. Transport, housing, culture, skills and employability all are prominent features within the City Region Deal.
International Recognition
Launching the new prospectus at the MIPIM UK property conference, Mackay said Scotland is a nation which offers “outstanding talent, world-class universities” and has a growing international appeal.
“Scotland has a strong and attractive investment offer,” he said. “Our growing economy, thriving cities, outstanding talent, world-class universities, leading-edge innovation, and high quality of life means there is much to offer international investors.”
Mackay added that the ‘Invest in Scotland’ prospectus “showcases market-ready opportunities for investors,” which have the potential to deliver new jobs, local investment and further develop Scotland’s reputation as a global leader in innovation and cutting-edge technologies.
The Scottish Government has worked to create a package which encourages investment and eliminates a certain degree of risk for international investors, Mackay noted.
“The Scottish Government has developed a highly-competitive package to encourage and de-risk investment, including rental guarantees, business rate exemptions, funding schemes and planning reforms. This is about strengthening the competitiveness of our economy to attract new investment and support existing investors to grow and expand.”
Paul Lewis, Managing Director of Scottish Development International, echoed Mackay’s statement, highlighting the need for Scotland to cultivate a “robust, sustainable and inclusive economy.”
He said: “Scottish Enterprise are working alongside partners to attract capital investment to Scotland, using our extensive international networks and capitalising on the opportunities presented by events like MIPIM.”
