Panmure House hosts Scottish Government investment speech and £24 million port announcement
A multi-million pound investment in a strategically important Scottish port and a call for more private investment into Scotland’s economy were announced by the Scottish Government at Panmure House today.
Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic, Kate Forbes MSP, delivered the update in a special lecture at Panmure House to an invited audience of business leaders, senior diplomats and journalists.
Panmure House is the former home of Adam Smith, the 18th century Scots economist and philosopher who is known as the father of modern economics. The historic townhouse is now part of Edinburgh Business School, the business school of Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, and hosts a year-round programme of events, debates, research projects and education focused on urgent economic, political and philosophical questions in the 21st century.
I would like to propose that a flagship event for the Scottish Government to set out its economic priorities becomes a yearly fixture at Panmure House.
Ms Forbes, who is the Scottish Government’s ‘Investment Champion,’ said: “It’s wonderful to be at Panmure House delivering an update on our vision for the Scottish economy – and how private sector investment doesn’t just deliver economic growth and prosperity – but also social value.”
Ms Forbes said Adam Smith’s focus on economic growth that also benefitted society reflected the Scottish Government’s own ambitions to attract private capital investment at scale for Scotland’s net zero, housing and public infrastructure goals.
As part of the Scottish Government’s strategic investment of up to £500 million over five years in critical offshore wind supply chain and infrastructure, Ms Forbes announced that Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) will invest up to £24 million at Kishorn Port in the west Highlands. This will enhance the port’s capacity and capabilities, with an expanded dry dock and land reclamation enabling the manufacture of floating offshore wind foundations.
“This is one of the most significant public investments in our port infrastructure in decades,” Ms Forbes said. “It is a clear signal from the Scottish Government and Highlands and Islands Enterprise that will give investors the confidence to invest millions more in the area’s wider infrastructure, economy and people.”
Ms Forbes said Scotland had a relatively strong track record in attracting foreign direct investment, but that overall private capital investment lagged behind other developed countries. The UK’s investment industry, for example, manages around £11 trillion in global assets.
“Scottish companies alone manage some £490 billion,” she added. “If we can see more of that capital for Scottish-based projects, the effect is transformational.”
The expanded facilities at Kishorn Port are forecast to attract projects with the potential to support up to 1,500 jobs once the port is fully developed.
Adam Smith Chair and Director of Panmure House, Professor Adam Dixon, said: “Adam Smith understood very well the importance of unleashing the power of markets and the private sector to drive economic growth – as well as social impact. So the Deputy First Minister’s messaging in today’s lecture is very fitting. I would like to propose that a flagship event for the Scottish Government to set out its economic priorities becomes a yearly fixture at Panmure House.”
Professor Angus Laing, Executive Dean of Edinburgh Business School and the School of Social Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, said: “Building sustainable and resilient supply chains was a key theme of the Deputy First Minister’s address – and this is a real area of our expertise at Edinburgh Business School. Engineering technologies are vital, but so are the suppliers and systems around that to capture the jobs and skills we need in Scotland.”
Professor Gillian Murray, Deputy Principal for Business and Enterprise at Heriot-Watt University, said: “We were honoured to host the Deputy First Minister and her team for today’s announcement and share the Scottish Government’s laser focus on economic growth. Our mission at Heriot-Watt University is to help drive that growth by delivering innovation, skills and entrepreneurship across all the regions we operate in. This includes our expertise in renewable energy and environmental science at our Orkney campus, to our world-class research in wind, wave and hydrogen technologies – and to our iNetZ+ Global Research Institute, where we are building a global centre of excellence to help drive decarbonisation and economic growth.”
In November, the Scottish Government announced a range of measures to transform how Scotland attracts and supports capital investment. These include an Investment Unit to identify and tackle barriers to investment; the creation of a single portal for investment enquiries and another detailing investment opportunities; and a new Cabinet sub-committee to co-ordinate activity.