Scotland’s Economy

Frank McNally Excerpts

Tuesday 15th October 2024 Westminster Hall

[Frank McNally (Coatbridge and Bellshill) (Lab)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow East (John Grady) on securing this important debate. After 14 years of economic mismanagement, my constituents deserve to see their wages go further, their public services performing better and their local communities thriving. For those aspirations to be met, we need good-quality, well-paid jobs that provide the security people need to plan for their futures and to have the economic confidence to spend in their local areas—to purchase in their local shops, and to support local cafés, restaurants and pubs, such as the Yard House in Coatbridge, which I had the privilege of visiting recently. So many of those establishments are facing real challenges.

In my community, I want to see the creation of jobs, investment in the skills that people need, and support for people who are seeking to develop those skills or to start their own businesses. I am pleased to see the work of our Labour Government. So much good work has already begun towards building a stronger, fairer economy in Scotland, which will provide the foundations to create those jobs: the Employment Rights Bill, which is set to ban exploitative zero-hours contracts, end fire and rehire and fundamentally tackle the scourge of low pay; the creation of the national wealth fund and GB Energy; and the significant event yesterday, which will deliver £63 billion of investment. I am keen to see what that means in reality for people across Coatbridge and Bellshill.

However, critical to that is improving Scotland’s economic circumstances and working to reset the relationship between Scotland’s two Governments. We must not underestimate the scale of the challenge we face. Labour market statistics published in July make for sobering reading, with unemployment rates and inactivity rates above those in the rest of the UK. Those figures show that rebuilding our economy and, more importantly, our communities, household finances and public services will not be easy or achieved overnight. That will require a level of analysis, investment and co-operation between the two Governments, which, sadly, we all know has been absent for far too long.

--- Later in debate ---

[Martin McCluskey]

I would say that it does have a great future. I am not dismissing the fact that there are issues within the Scottish universities sector, which many of my hon. Friends laid out during the debate, but there is huge potential for the future of the sector and it is for not only the Scottish Government but the UK Government to make sure that it is realised. In terms of our relationship and working together, what we saw from the previous Government was a stand-off, and I do not think that works to the benefit of the people of Scotland. What the majority of Scots want to see are their two Governments working together to deliver better results.

[Frank McNally]

I welcome the Minister to his place. We have been talking about universities, but there is also a significant challenge in Scotland with the decimation of further education, particularly colleges. This is creating real challenges for people who are looking to upskill and reskill, and we must ensure that the people who are best placed to secure the jobs of the future are able to do so. Does the Minister agree that much more needs to be done by the Scottish Government to ensure that further education in Scotland gets the support that it deserves?

[Martin McCluskey]

I agree. I know from experience in my own constituency with James Watt college in Greenock—now part of West College Scotland—that there have been issues with investment in colleges. That largely impacts on opportunities for working-class young people, and for people who perhaps did not get the results that they wanted at school and need a second chance. The college sector always provided that for people, but at the moment it is struggling to do so in many places across Scotland.