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ACSEF goes to Holyrood

Like or loathe the Scottish Parliament building at Holyrood, most people might concede that it has at least some interesting features.

Among these are the tables in the committee rooms. Designed by the architects and built of oak and sycamore, the tables in each of the six rooms are different and, with the exception of that in Committee Room 3, are fixed in place as a permanent feature of the room.

The exception is made up of around 20 oddly-shaped individual units which can be fitted together to create various formations of larger tables. Collectively they fit together like a jigsaw to form one large, solid unit.

It was here in Committee Room 3 that a delegation from Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Future (ACSEF) found itself recently when it took the region’s plans for economic growth into the heart of the Parliament building to brief politicians and Government representatives about those plans and their potential to produce a positive impact across the whole country.

Armed with an impressive weaponry of facts and figures about the City and Shire – second highest GVA per head in the UK; £266million in business rates paid annually; over £6billion in oil and gas exports; supports 200,000 Scottish oil and gas jobs; accounts for almost a third of Scotland’s food exports; generates 14% of Scotland’s food and drink; the list goes on – the ACSEF team gave a well-documented presentation about the impact which this corner of Scotland has on the rest of the country.

It pointed out its aspirations and priorities – to double the number of life sciences companies in the region; 50% growth in tourism revenues; grow food and drink company turnover by 30%; anchor a sustainable oil, gas and all-energy sector in the region - all leading to a target growth of 2.5% GVA.

The team also reminded its audience that:

• l atest research from the Centre for International Competitiveness ranked Aberdeen fourth in the UK – ahead of Cambridge and Edinburgh;

• a FT study by Experian said Aberdeen has the best record and potential for growth in manufacturing in the UK;

• the Cities Outlook 2011 Annual Index placed Aberdeen as the only city in Scotland and one of only five in the UK to lead the country out of recession with high potential to create private sector jobs and;

• Scottish Business Insider’s 500 analysis highlighted our economic importance by revealing that 11 of the top 25 companies ranked by turnover and profitability are located in the region.

So here we were sitting at the jigsaw puzzle table laying out all the pieces of the North-east development plans and inviting the politicians to get involved to help bring all the pieces together to create a brighter picture for Scotland’s future economic development.

That buy in from Government is essential if we are to fully exploit the potential to bring greater national benefit.

The Cities Outlook 2011 report, said: “For the Government to realise cities’ economic potential over the next year, it will need to support cities to respond to significant economic challenges. But it will also need to empower cities – particularly those with strong economies – to continue to drive national economic growth.”

That comment summarised concisely the message which the ACSEF leaders were there to deliver – that there must not only be real and committed recognition of Aberdeen City and Shire’s contribution and potential, there must be action to support it.

This was not a delegation which had come to the Capital cap in hand, this was a delegation which had come to the Capital, bringing with it, the pieces which joined together will drive economic recovery and future growth.

There was an inherent reminder that the status quo will not remain, that securing and capitalising on the North-east’s future potential is dependent on continued investment – both private and public sector – and that Government must invest in success to ensure that that success continues far into the future.

To deliver that potential the ACSEF “asks of Government” were:

• Investment and commitment to major transport infrastructure

• Funding or support to raise funding for major projects such as Energetica and city centre regeneration

• A fairer deal for our local authorities

Given what’s at stake, it’s surely not much to ask for.

And while Scotland’s regions can all operate independently as individual economic entities, a strong, successful Scotland depends on all the pieces of the jigsaw coming together to build a single functioning unit – a bit like that table.

Kate Yuill, Policy and Communications Manager