Advisory Group on Economic Recovery: weekly update - weeks 4 to 8

Items and actions

Weeks 6 to 8

Summary of meetings of the Advisory Group on Economic Recovery from week six to eight (1 to 19 June).

Through weeks six to eight the Advisory Group on Economic Recovery meetings were purely focussed on the analysis of the submissions received and the generation of output for the report.  This involved the further development of the Four Pillars approach towards the Scottish economy as a whole and the analysis and classification of submissions received.  Resulting in the formation of the final report published online on the 22nd June.

Week 5

Summary of meetings of the Advisory Group on Economic Recovery from week five (25 to 29 May).

This week the Advisory Group discussed the impact of COVID-19 on the attractiveness of Scottish exports and of Scotland as a location for Foreign Direct Investment. The following key points were made during the discussion:

• The impact of different Brexit scenario and the UK’s future relationship with the EU on Scotland’s economy.
• Increased interest in clean tech and renewable technology among investors and Scotland’s comparative advantages in these areas.
• Increased focus among the business community on supply chain resilience, a trend which has accelerated in the wake of COVID-19.
• Opportunities for Scotland to develop clusters based around complementary technologies drawing on the research & development capacity of Scotland’s universities.

The Group also discussed key structural components of the report, building on the Four Pillars approach agreed the previous week.  The Group also presented and shared their analysis on key priorities to be considered under each of the pillars.

Week 4

This week the Advisory Group on Economic Recovery (AGER) discussed the impact of Covid-19 on the Rural economy and on Scotland’s natural capital. Some key points raised were:

• Opportunities for carbon capture and sequestration in Scotland as part of delivering on the Scottish Government’s commitment to meet its net zero emissions goal.
• Scotland’s ability to expand and export renewable energy outputs to rest of the UK.
• The combined impact of Brexit and Covid-19 on the Rural economy in Scotland.
• The impact of existing trends such as depopulation and accessibility on the rural economy and opportunities arising from Covid-19 to address some of the existing trends.

The group also received a presentation of the anticipated impact of Covid-19 on International Trade and inward investment. Important outcomes from this presentations were around identifying key advantages Scotland can offer to future international trading and investment partners to help in the green recovery towards a wellbeing economy. Finally the group made significant strides forward in agreeing the structure the AGER report should take, especially around how to most efficiently use the 4 pillars approach agreed last week.