Chamber and committees

Richard, do you have anything to add?

What can the Scottish and UK Governments do to address labour shortages?

I want to put the same question to Paul Hunter. We can look at vacancies by sector. Vacancies have increased by 50 per cent since 2016.

We are looking at sectors that have been hit hardest by inefficient supply chains. We have already heard that in transportation and storage the number of vacancies is between 76,000 and 100,000. In manufacturing, vacancies have increased by 63 per cent, and in construction they have increased by 79 per cent since 2016. In written evidence to the committee, the Construction Industry Training Board said that 26,000 more people will be required by 2025. Can Paul Hunter give some indication of how we can address that problem as it hits us in the next couple of years?

Do other witnesses want to come in on that question?

I am glad that we have started to talk about labour shortages. I will address this question to Melanie Simms, to start with. The Office for National Statistics produced figures last month that showed that vacancies across the UK had passed 1.1 million for the first time in history. The number of payroll employees was a record 29 million, which surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Do we have a problem with a labour shortages or a skills gap? What can the Scottish Government—or the UK Government, for that matter—do to address those issues?

A survey that we have seen says that 52 per cent of SMEs are not taking any action towards decarbonising their business. What steps need to be taken to persuade companies of the commercial importance of adapting for net zero and the negative consequences of not doing so? That is for John Ferguson.

Michael Cusack touched on the fact that you want the UK Government to look at the VAT system and change towards focusing on decarbonisation. Are there any other fiscal changes that you would like to be made in order to encourage companies to decarbonise?

I would like to hear from the other panellists what steps they have taken to reduce their carbon footprints. I will go first to Jo Chidley from Beauty Kitchen.

Good morning, panel. I want to ask about tourism. We are aware that tourism is important for the Scottish economy and that it has been hit hard by the lack of international visitors. Earlier this year, it was announced that a new £25 million tourism recovery programme was being launched. How has that funding been utilised to support Scottish tourism?

Finally, it was estimated that 6.5 million people took staycations in Scotland during the summer. That made Scotland the third most popular destination in the UK. How will the Government build on that increase in domestic visitors? How will you support the sector in the 2022-23 budget, including in investment to address infrastructure pinch points?