Scottish Chambers of Commerce has welcomed today’s publication of the second phase report of the Scottish Government’s Enterprise and Skills Review.

However, it has called for close scrutiny of the new agency structure’s achievements over the coming years to ensure quick and effective progress. Liz Cameron, Chief Executive of Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said:

“The Scottish Chambers of Commerce network welcomes the publication of the Scottish Government’s Phase 2 report on its Enterprise and Skills Review. It is vital that the services that businesses receive from Scotland’s public sector are constantly evolving to meet their needs and to help business, and our economy, to grow.

“At a time when the Scottish economy is significantly underperforming that of the UK as a whole, this review has been timely, and this latest set of actions give us much more detail about how the new proposed structure will interface with businesses in practice.

“We welcome the creation of a South of Scotland Enterprise Agency, focused on the particular opportunities, challenges and needs of businesses in Dumfries & Galloway and in the Scottish Borders. We also welcome the strong role envisioned for the Scottish Chambers of Commerce network in terms of building the exporting potential of Scotland’s businesses – which will be an even stronger priority in the post-Brexit landscape.

“What we need to see now is exactly how the private sector can have a role to provide the leadership and guidance necessary to make these new structures work. The new framework must deliver real change for the better in a very short timescale and this must be monitored on a regular basis to ensure that there is material progress in supporting Scotland’s businesses and growing our economy.”