FINANCE Secretary Derek Mackay has urged other parties to work with him to help get Scotland’s economy out of the doldrums.
Mr Mackay, who was given responsibility for the economy in Nicola Sturgeon’s recent reshuffle, said he wanted “far greater collaboration” across the political aisle.
With GDP forecast to grow at less than 1 per cent for five years, the Tories, Labour and LibDems have attacked the SNP relentlessly over the state of the economy.
Writing in today’s Herald, Mr Mackay said the country expected politicians to cooperate on issues as important as the economy in order to deliver well-paying jobs.
- Derek Mackay: Growth Commission will be key to my economic strategy
He said: “While we will often disagree on how this should best be achieved, I believe there is scope for far greater collaboration. Our Parliament should be sending a clear message to the world that Scotland is open for business.
“As Finance Secretary I have had to work to build consensus to ensure that the Scottish Government’s budget gets cross party support.
“I want to carry that engagement forward into my work to support the Scottish economy.
“While robust debate is part and parcel of democracy the public rightly expects their politicians to work together for the good of the country.”
Mr Mackay also defended the profusion of economic initiatives under the SNP, despite the Fraser of Allander Institute criticising the creation of a “cluttered policy landscape”.
- Derek Mackay: Growth Commission will be key to my economic strategy
The respected economic think tank said there had been an unhelpful burgeoning of different strategies, city deals, enterprise bodies and advisory boards - even an Arctic strategy - leading to a lack of clarity.
Mr Mackay wrote: “We have faced criticism for the number of strategies that we have, but in my view this reflects the complexity of the modern economic environment and our desire to find bespoke solutions. It’s not the number of strategies that matters, but how effective they are and what they achieve.”
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