SNP landslide raises questions for Scottish construction sector
May 9 2011
Mulling the possibilities David Davidson, managing director - Scotland, of Cushman & Wakefield's Partner-Capital Markets Group said, “Many Scots feel that the UK Government appears to be dominated by the interests of London and the South East. This appears to reflect a broader pattern which is evident in many businesses where the south east is powering ahead and many regional businesses are operating on thin margins and still concerned about the speed of economic recovery.
“The property industry is an interesting test bed for Independence. If the Scottish Government introduces policies which create an uneven playing field, it can have a very big impact positively or negatively in terms of investment decisions. As an example, will Scotland be the only area in the UK without Enterprise Zones? Or can it introduce changes that will make investment into Enterprise Zones more attractive?”
“It will also be interesting to see if there is a negative backlash in terms of future investment, as companies based outside of Scotland weigh up whether investment in the Midlands or the North West of England is "safer" than investment north of Hadrian's Wall.
“The election result is being hailed as a watershed. However, I hope we can rely on the SNP to stand by its election pledge to continue to govern in a responsible and open way and to think through the consequences of all its decisions.”
More immediately the result is good news for Glasgow’s Clyde Fastlink scheme, with the SNP government committed to financing it in its entirety. Salmond is also keen to prioritise new borrowing powers in a bid to kick start the construction industry.
5 Comments
#2 Posted by FW on 10 May 2011 at 10:14 AM
RIAS Convention organisers have clearly worked hard to collect together the most boring range of speakers possible. Only one missing is Pat Lally:-(
#3 Posted by JD on 10 May 2011 at 17:22 PM
True FW, it's a dull group. Not surprised RIAS keep sending me reminders to book but what has this to do with the SNP landslide?
#4 Posted by richard heggie on 11 May 2011 at 16:32 PM
There's a growing thread on planning system prospects under the SNP govt here if anyone's interested :
http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestionAndAnswers=&discussionID=53661096&gid=3833071&commentID=38888091&goback=%2Enmp_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1&trk=NUS_DISC_Q-subject#commentID_38888091
http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestionAndAnswers=&discussionID=53661096&gid=3833071&commentID=38888091&goback=%2Enmp_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1&trk=NUS_DISC_Q-subject#commentID_38888091
#5 Posted by brian on 18 May 2011 at 16:23 PM
As much as the new transport museum needs public transport to get near it!why are we going to waste money on fastlink when theres already train line what happened to old partick central stn near transport museum!Glasgow deserves better than this.hope this doesnt go ahead.
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Equally, it will be interesting to see if there is a POSITIVE backlash in terms of future investment......