Latest news with #SaraThiam
The Herald Scotland
25-06-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Growing the economy and the art of the possible
Without economic growth, we can't create opportunity — and without opportunity everywhere, the economy won't thrive. At a time when Scottish society is ageing and too many Scots aren't in work, investing in new education, lifelong learning and training opportunities is a key priority. In a highly competitive global economy, we must back Scotland's existing strengths, such as in food and drink, financial services, and energy, whilst attracting new opportunities in data, space, and life sciences. With economic security a major concern, we must support our critical technologies clusters and develop circular solutions which safeguard our access to critical raw materials as well as attract investment to Scotland from higher UK defence spending. It isn't enough to create the conditions to produce more at home if we have nowhere to sell them. Building trade partnerships with markets such as EU, US and India is vital to help domestic firms grow. Scotland is good at making new discoveries, but we sometimes struggle to make money from them. Adapting procurement rules to make the public sector the 'first customer' for Scottish tech and research is one eye-catching idea. A post-election cross-party approach to shaping a funding model that puts our world-leading higher education institutions on a sustainable footing would ensure that our universities continue to be engines of growth and opportunity. Our infrastructure is creaking, with delays in the planning system holding back growth, so brownfield housing developments should be fast-tracked and modern methods of construction embraced to enable 25,000 homes to be built a year. Cleaning up our economy and improving living standards are two sides of the same coin. Energy transition provides a once in a generation opportunity. A relentless focus to provide economic certainty and remove barriers to skills reform, competition, infrastructure delivery, and innovation is needed more than ever to realise its potential. A pragmatic transition from hydrocarbons towards renewable and low carbon energy in the North Sea will also help the oil and gas supply chain invest in new opportunities. Empowering Scotland's regions would help align funding and unlock investment. A mission-driven approach, with government setting and sticking to high-level priorities, will enable progress by front-line organisations, and this must be backed with multi-year budgets to invest in new ideas and ways of working. Once the votes are counted, Prosper stands ready to bring government, business, the third sector and communities together to make prosperity possible for Scotland, as we have done for nearly a century. Sara Thiam is Chief Executive, Prosper Agenda is a column for outside contributors. Contact: agenda@
Daily Record
14-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Scotland being held back by chronic shortage of housing with calls for 25,000 new builds a year
A new report is calling for the SNP Government to commit to a new national target of building 25,000 new homes per year. Scotland's economic growth is being held back by a chronic shortage of housing, a new report has warned. More than 100 experts from local government, universities, housebuilders and construction companies gave their views in the new Housing Supply for a Growing Economy publication. The report has called for the SNP Government to commit to a new national target of building 25,000 new homes per year to help tackle the severe shortage in some parts of the country. Its publication comes one day after official figures found housebuilding in Scotland has plummeted in the last year, with nearly 4,000 fewer homes in supply in 2023-24 compared to the year before. In 2022-23 the new housing supply was 24,348 – but by last year the figure had plummeted to 20,364. It comes at a time rising numbers of Scots are declaring themselves homeless, while reports of rough sleeping in Edinburgh and Glasgow are increasing. More than 10,000 children are living in temporary accommodation with their families across the country due to a chronic lack of affordable housing, particularly around the biggest cities. The new report calling for action was compiled by Prosper, which was previously known as Scottish Council for Development and Industry. Sara Thiam, Prosper chief executive, said: "Scotland risks losing out on the growth opportunities from the energy transition and our industrial strategy unless housing is placed at the heart of our national economic strategy. "Our members have been clear - without more appropriate and affordable homes, businesses will continue to struggle to recruit, communities can't thrive, and investment will stall.' Jane Wood, chief executive of Homes for Scotland, said: "We wholeheartedly welcome the addition of Prosper's voice to the debate on how we deliver the homes of all tenures and types required to ensure the social wellbeing of Scotland's people and support economic growth. "This further underpins the importance of home building to the achievement of wider government policy objectives and strengthens our call for bold intervention so that everyone has access to a home that meets their needs and that they can afford." Paul McLennan, the Housing Minister, said he recognised 'these are exceptionally challenging times'. He added: "It is encouraging that affordable housing starts and approvals have increased in the year to December 2024, and we will continue to work with partners to increase these levels even further through our £768 million investment this year, an increase of £200 million when compared to last financial year. 'Providing everyone in Scotland with the right to a warm, safe and affordable home is essential to our key priority of eradicating child poverty.'
