‘Independence at all costs’ attitude only creating more business uncertainty

The long-awaited Growth Commission report does little to convince businesses in Scotland that SNP ministers are fighting their corner.

With Brexit now likely to be followed by the looming presence of a further independence referendum, we are again heading into a period of artificially protracted uncertainty that will continue to inflict economic damage and curtail the competitiveness of Scottish business, both Uk-wide and internationally.

While we might be expected to be used to it by now, it still beggars belief that our government’s over-arching economic strategy is to sever ties with Scotland’s biggest market. We trade four times as much with the rest of the UK, so it doesn’t make sense to introduce unnecessary barriers.

The reality is that Scottish businesses play a vital part in supporting our communi- ties at every level and remain stronger as part of the UK.

We already have the powers in place here in Scotland to reform our economy, so why do we need to create further uncertainty by taking a sledge hammer to crack a nut?

Scottish Business UK (SBUK) fears that economic success for Scotland is being held perpetually captive by a political attitude by its leaders of independence at all costs. It’s now time for Scotland’s businesses who share these concerns to voice them loud and clear. ROBERT KILGOUR (founder), STRUAN STEVENSON (chief executive), JACK PERRY,

advisory board member Scottish Business UK (SBUK),

Eskmills, Musselburgh The real importance of the Growth Commission report’s analysis and recommendations is that it reminds all Scots and their politicians that the “tools” to pull the country out of its nosedive and transform it are available now, in the box marked “Devolution”.

We should agree on some basic facts: we overspend, we are overweight and a burden on the NHS, our kids aren’t educated well enough to compete, real action is needed on housing. They do it on things like climate change or samesex marriages, so why not on the real pressing issues?

Instead of kidding us that it’s all Westminster’s fault or queuing up to criticise the SNP or shouting down good ideas just because it’s from the other party, don’t wait till 2021, start now to work together and get Scotland out of its nosedive. ALLAN SUTHERLAND Willow Row, Stonehaven Since the publication of the Growth Commission report on Friday the sadly predictable condemnation by the Unionists has grown to a howl. Jackson Carlaw [deputy leader of the Scottish Conservatives] even managed to condemn it the day before it was published. He should take up fortune-telling.

However, their main attack seems to be that Scotland, and only Scotland, will be incapable of choosing the currency which best suits its needs.

Since the founding of the United Nations 147 countries have become independent but not one of them considered that the question of which currency to use was anything other than a minor detail, and so it proved.

The Unionists claim that rich, peaceful, educated and law-abiding Scotland is the only country in Northern Europe which is incapable of bettering itself by taking its own decisions on currency and development. Yet all those small countries like Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland have higher standards of living than Scotland. Perhaps the fact that these small countries are all independent may have something to do with it.

JAMES DUNCAN Rattray Grove, Edinburgh As the legendary US football coach Yogi Berra once exclaimed: “It’s deja vu all over again!’’

The latest referendum Mark 2 prospectus from the SNP is perhaps less fantasy-riddled than their first, but that is the best that can be said. It is frightening to think how much of our taxes was spent on this latest project.

No one seems to have told the nationalist authors that we already had a referendum in 2014 – a “once in a lifetime’’ chance, their leaders memorably declared–and, with every possible advantage, they lost.

What is it they do not understand about that result? When they will start thinking about all of the people of this country rather than their zealot fringe? ALEXANDER MCKAY New Cut Rigg, Edinburgh Despite being written by a former banker, the SNP’S new blueprint for independence reads like fantasy economics.

The SNP has told us that in an independent Scotland there would be “disciplined deficit reduction”. It suggests an independent Scotland would find £1 billion of “efficiencies” in the public sector – another word for cuts. And finally, despite all this unnecessary pain, it admits it is “likely” that some companies and banks would relocate to England.

There are thousands of finance jobs across Scotland, are those jobs a price worth paying?

PHIL TATE Craiglockhart Road, Edinburgh