COVID-19: Role of enterprise agencies, SNIB and other economic development partners

Closed 31 Jul 2020

Opened 3 Jul 2020

Contact

Alison Walker

(Clerk Team Leader)

Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee

0131 3485236

economy@parliament.scot

Published responses

View submitted responses where consent has been given to publish the response.

Overview

COVID-19: Role of enterprise agencies, SNIB and other economic development partners

The Economy Energy and Fair Work Committee will continue to focus on the impact of COVID-19 in the autumn and invites you to submit evidence on the specific issues outlined below:

This specific consultation focuses on the role of enterprise agencies, the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB) and other economic development partners. Please only answer the questions you have a view on.

  1. How nimble is Scotland’s economic development system? How, if at all, has the system pivoted to respond to the crisis so far? What has changed pre and post lockdown? Are there lessons to be learned? 
  2. How are the economic development agencies consulting businesses to establish their needs during the crisis? Are certain sectors being prioritised? Which and why? Is there equality of outcomes?
  3. How are the economic development agencies working together to assist businesses and workers during the crisis? Who is taking responsibility to ensure alignment? How will the impact of interventions be measured?
  4. How is the enterprise and skills agencies’ response to COVID-19 supporting young people, BAME owned businesses, and women owned businesses? 
  5. Do existing initiatives, such as innovation centres and city deals, need to be adapted in response to the economic crisis? If yes, what type of change is needed? 
  6. How should enterprise agencies prioritise their budgets? What should the economic development agencies stop doing to free up resources for dealing with the economic crisis? Is there transparency around enterprise agency spend?
  7. Are the economic development agencies still providing support on Brexit and preparing for a possible ‘no deal’?
  8. How should the forthcoming Scottish National Investment Bank missions be framed to provide the support needed by businesses in the short-term whilst promoting longer-term targets (such as net-zero emissions of all greenhouse gases by 2045)? 
  9. What should the criteria be for public sector investment in companies? How will that be scrutinised? How has this been managed previously? What lessons can be learned? 
  10. What lessons can be learned from the economic development response to COVID-19 in other countries?

 

Why your views matter

This is part of the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee’s ongoing inquiry on the impact of COVID-19 on Scotland’s economy, including businesses and workers.  The Committee issued an open call for views after the crisis began; we thank those who have already submitted evidence. This has helped inform the Committee’s scrutiny of the Scottish and UK Governments’ response to the crisis. More information on the Committee’s work to date can be found here.

How to submit your views
Please submit your views via the submission form, linked to below.

The call for views will close on Friday 31 July 2020.

If you need advice, please contact the Clerks on the email address: economy@parliament.scot

Before making a submission, please read our privacy notice (pdf) about submitting your views to a Committee. This tells you about how we process your personal data.  If you are under 12 years of age, please read this privacy notice (pdf).

We welcome written views in English, Gaelic, Scots or any other language.