A UNIVERSITY has welcomed a “forward-thinking” report on developing Scotland’s green industrial strategy, which includes a specific focus on higher education.
A Roadmap for a Scottish Green industrial Strategy was published on Friday after being commissioned by SNP MP Ian Blackford and led on by former top civil servant Sir Martin Donnelly and London-based academic Professor Dominic Houlder.
It identifies a "window of opportunity" to fully deliver on the potential of the Scottish economy and recommends a renewed focus on growth in the sectors of higher education innovation and alternative energy – two areas where Scotland has a “competitive advantage”.
It says these areas should be seen as the “first treads on a strategic staircase for growth in value-added and productivity” and suggests the creation of a Scottish Industrial Strategy Council in the autumn – a single decision-making body responsible for delivering on growth priorities around green energy provision and university innovation.
The report has been welcomed by the University of St Andrews, which said it was pleased to see a focus on the importance of holding on to international talent.
The paper highlighted the significant loss of the Fresh Talent Initiative which ran from 2004 to 2008 and enabled international students to extend their residency automatically for two years after graduation. Blackford said to boost the Scottish economy, it would need to find a way to hold on to international talent and ensure it doesn’t land elsewhere.
READ MORE: Scottish independence: Paper reveals 'sheer scale' of growth opportunity
A University of St Andrews spokesperson said: “This is a helpful and forward-thinking report.
“It’s encouraging to see the value and potential of Scotland’s higher and further education sectors recognised, and a focus on the importance of holding on to the international talent attracted to Scottish universities every year.”
Houlder and Donnelly say it is clear from the range of STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) output from Scottish universities that Scotland already works at the leading edge of European research across a range of disciplines.
But they say there is a risk the higher education sector succeeds in developing talent and valuable intellectual property with little impact on the Scottish economy more broadly if it doesn’t develop better ecosystems in this area.
Meanwhile, with regards to alternative energy, it states that if the sector is to develop many more jobs than those lost to the decline of fossil fuels, that will require the development of subcontracting networks, community engagement and a long-term political commitment to provide finance and wider political support for the development of necessary skills and infrastructure.
Alba MP Kenny MacAskill (above) said the report was just “warm words” and “long on rhetoric and short on action”.
He told The National: “Where’s the reference to a state energy company and community benefit?
“This is warm words whilst Denmark takes 20% state in every offshore wind farm and Ireland guarantees 24 million euros per annum to communities hosting offshore wind farm facilities.
“As with the discredited Growth Commission this is long on rhetoric and short on action. Energy-rich Scotland needs to see much more control over her natural bounty and benefit for Scots suffering from the perversity of fuel poverty.“
The report was welcomed by the Greens, but said there is a need to look beyond just how developing the green economy impacts profit and growth.
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Greens MSP Gillian Mackay said: “Scotland has the potential to be a world leader in the green economy. But as this report points out that will only happen if governments in both London and Edinburgh recognise and seize this once in a lifetime opportunity.
“We already have a highly skilled workforce, and through the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund we’re developing new green training facilities, emerging energy technology pilot schemes, research and innovation, transport solutions, and net zero ready supply chains. This will help us maximise benefits to Scotland as the sector grows.
“Of course, as this work continues we have to look beyond just how it impacts profit and growth. We have to ensure it works for people and planet as well, providing good quality jobs, supporting communities, reducing poverty and inequalities, and helping to protect our environment.
“But if we’re to reap the bounty and the tens of thousands of jobs that this opportunity represents, the UK Government needs to dramatically rethink its approach, from its ongoing dependence on the oil industry, to its hostility to immigration, to its reluctance to devolve more powers to Scotland.”
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