Economic group is still to meet after two years

A key ministerial group chaired by the First Minister to oversee the development of strategy to transform the economy has never met – and could now be scrapped, MSPS have been told.

The economic leadership group was meant to bring together key members of the Cabinet with the president of local government body Cosla, under the stewardship of the First Minister.

The group was part of the ten-year National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) launched in March 2022 by Kate Forbes, the new Deputy First Minister, when she was finance and economy secretary.

Ms Forbes pledged at the time that the government would “provide clear and decisive leadership”, adding: “The task of transforming our economy requires an equally radical transformation in the way we deliver results.”

But a recent report from watchdogs at Audit Scotland highlighted a “gap in collective political leadership” as the government has so far failed to establish the group.

Gregor Irwin, the Scottish Government’s director-general for the economy, told Holyrood’s public audit committee yesterday: “It is absolutely true the economic leadership group has not met.

“The reason for that originally was because of the challenge of getting ministerial diaries to align and to find the appropriate moment to have the meeting of that group.”

The group was supposed to meet twice a year but Mr Irwin insisted there has been “very substantial involvement of ministers over the past two years”.

But he told the committee: “That doesn’t change the fact that the economic leadership group has not met. But there have been many other ways in which there has been collective ministerial oversight of NSET.”

Committee convener Richard Leonard said: “You weren’t able to co-ordinate the diaries of half a dozen, at the most, Cabinet secretaries and the president of Cosla to fix up a meeting? I’m struggling to understand why.”

Pressed on whether the economic leadership group will now be “scrapped” after failing to meet in two years, Mr Irwin said government officials will be putting advice to the new ministerial team, adding: “This is one area we will specifically look it.”

Commenting afterwards, Scottish Conservative shadow finance spokesperson Liz Smith said: “The SNP’S announcement of an economic leadership group which, two years later, hasn’t even met is like an illustration of their entire approach – a gimmick produced with fanfare, and then complete failure to deliver.”