The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Call for development agency for north-east
Lib Dem backs body to promote growth and jobs
The Scottish Government is being urged to establish a new development agency for the north-east to help the region’s transition to a post-oil future.
The proposed “North East Scotland Enterprise” would be similar to bodies which already exist to promote growth and jobs in the Highlands and islands, and the south of Scotland.
Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire are predicted to be among the areas to be hardest hit economically by the pandemic, with an associated downturn in the oil industry creating a “double whammy”.
Lib Dems in the region have now suggested the special circumstances require the creation of a new agency.
John Waddell, the party’s former candidate in West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, made the call in a blog and it has now been backed by north-east MSP Mike Rumbles.
He said: “There is a huge amount of untapped potential in the north-east. The plan will bring a fresh and tailored approach to reinvigorate our local economy.”
Mr Waddell said such a Scottish Governmentbacked agency would help the region transition its economy. He acknowledged Opportunity North East and others already had similar aims, but he insisted: “We need a body with more teeth and central government funding.”
He said: “The Scottish and UK governments have benefited from the wealth of the north-east for decades. Now we need their broad shoulders and pooled resources to invest in our future economy.
“We must future-proof our economy, provide for the next generation, and we need an institution capable of delivering that.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “We are supporting the north-east economy through a range of measures, including £125 million as part of the Aberdeen City Region Deal, plus an additional £254m to facilitate a more significant step change to the economy.”
He added: “Importantly for the north-east, our Restart the Economy stimulus package of £230m includes a £62m Energy Transition Fund which will invest in projects that will benefit SMEs in the broader energy supply chain.”
“We need their broad shoulders and pooled resources”