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Scottish Government Election results comment

AGCC comment:

“The Chamber congratulates the winners and commiserates with the losers in what has been a landmark election for Scotland.

The Scottish Government’s main focus in the coming months and years has to be growing the economy and the Chamber will continue to work with the Scottish Government and across all parties to make sure the business sector can benefit from the best possible operating environment to generate prosperity, wealth and jobs for Scotland and the North-east. This will mean fiscal stability, global competitiveness, reduced red-tape and effective incentives. We fully expect the Scottish Government to be responsible and responsive so that we can all work together for a viable economic future, and this will involve legislative restraint as well as policy commitment. Our main focus at the AGCC will continue to be those issues which businesses highlight as being important to them.”

SCC comment:

Commenting on the results of the 2011 Scottish Parliamentary Election, Liz Cameron, Chief Executive of Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said:

“The Scottish National Party have achieved a spectacular result in the elections and have a clear mandate to continue to govern Scotland for the next five years.  We congratulate them on this achievement and indeed all MSPs who have been successfully elected.

“The challenge now is to get on with the job of getting Scotland’s economy back on track.  With Scotland’s first majority devolved Government, Alex Salmond and his team have a golden opportunity to put business first and free us up to create the jobs and growth that our country so badly needs.  Scottish Chambers of Commerce have set out a clear challenge to politicians of all parties to channel Scotland’s finite public spending into those areas which will help businesses to prosper.  The public purse is tight but if we fail to invest in skills, transport, communications and economic development then we put Scotland’s long term economic wellbeing at risk.

“Minority government delivered a great deal of welcome consensus over the last four years and the Scottish Government now faces a real challenge to deliver a Scottish consensus from a majority position.  It is vital that it continues to engage constructively with the Scottish business community and work as a team alongside the private sector to take Scotland forward in the right direction towards growth.

“It is Scottish businesses that are the key to creating jobs and bringing prosperity to our country but Government has a key role as a catalyst to allow them to do this.  Our hope for the next five years is that we will see a strong Government which actively engages with business to build a solid economic future, led by the private sector.”