Scottish Labour is aiming to ‘rewrite the rules of our economy’

S c o t t i s h L a b o u r h a s announced a plan to encourage investment in S cotland and “rewrite the rules of our economy”.

U n d e r a S c o t t i s h L a b o u r Ho l y r o o d g ove r n me n t , t h e par t y said it would set up a Scottish Sustainable Finance Group to bring together the countr y’s banks, asset managers and finance houses.

T h e g r o u p , a l o n g w i t h r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s o f t r a d e unions and business, would then be tasked with developing a long-term strategy for the economy.

Party leader Richard Leonard said: “S cottish Lab our’s plans to create a greener better future for us all, while creating quality, well-paid jobs for good, will be crucial to leading us out of this recession.

“But to deliver a green jobsl e d r e c o v e r y, w e n e e d t o rewrite the rules of our economy.

“That’s why Scottish Labour s u p p o r t s r e f o r m s t o t h e finance sector so that it works not just for shareholders and well-paid big business executives but also for employees, customers, co-operatives and small and medium sized businesses.”

He added: “A Scottish Labour government would launch a Scottish Sustainable Finance Group to bring together Scott i s h - b a s e d b a n k s , f i n a n c e houses and asset managers with representatives of business and trade unions to develop a l o ng - te r m s u s t a i n a b l e investment strategy for these sectors.

“And financial institutions that have bases in our main f i n a n c i a l c e n t r e s o f E d i n - b u rg h , G l a s g ow, A b e r d e e n a n d e l s e w h e r e w o u l d b e e n co u r ag e d to i nve s t mor e into Scottish businesses and projects directly and to state how much they invest in Scotland and what percentage of t h e i r t o t a l i nve s tment i s i n Scotland.”

The par t y, if it gains p ower at Holyrood in next year’s election, has also committed to using the Scottish National Investment Bank to finance a “green new deal” it claims will create 130,000 jobs.

Mr Leonard said: “The Scottish National Investment Bank should lead the way in ensuring that we get the funding in place to deliver a green new deal and are able to revive the economy with a jobs led recovery.

“A green new deal is neede d t o r e v i ve o u r e c o n o my, d e l i v e r i n g i m p r o v e m e n t s i n h o u s i n g , e n e r g y, i n f r a - s t r u c t u r e , e n v i r o n m e n t a l restoration and transp or t.”

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