A senior business leader has warned that more attention must be paid to Scotland’s grass-roots firms next year than the “lip service” they received during the independence referendum campaign.
Scottish Chambers of Commerce chief executive Liz Cameron said politics would again cast a deep shadow over the economy in the year ahead as May’s General Election dogfight got into full swing.
But she said it is vital the very real day-to-day concerns of Scottish businesses are not lost in the political melee.
“An early challenge will be to secure clarity, resolution and speed on the recommendations of the Smith Commission concerning more powers for the Scottish Parliament,” she said.
“Scottish businesses have been extraordinarily patient over a protracted period that has seen political attention dominated by constitutional politics. While the political battle raged, little attention was paid to the daily endeavours and achievements of business.
“For many businesses, survival is a touch-and-go affair: orders to be filled, bills paid, suppliers secured, deadlines met, budgets adhered to, staff hired and a mountain of regulatory paperwork to be dealt with.
“In all this there is a continuing process of innovation and adaptation to cope with, and challenges ranging from changes in consumer taste to hectic, disruptive advances in information technology.
“Throughout the referendum campaign many felt that lip service was paid to the business sector. This has to change.”
Despite the uncertain political environment, she said firms north of the border had shown great resilience to emerge from a recession, and there had been progress this year in a number of key economic performance measures.
Ms Cameron said more people were in work than a year ago private-sector employment increased by almost 73,000 to more than two million more opportunities were being created for young people, the number of registered businesses had increased to a record level, and business start-ups were on the rise.
However, the business community still faced challenges.
“The outcome of the general election in May is deeply uncertain, and with a hung parliament likely, we could see legislative gridlock and adverse implications on financial markets.
“The final months of 2014 saw an extraordinary plunge in the price of oil.
“A collapse of more than 40% in the price of Brent crude in barely four months brings severe problems for our North Sea oil industry.
“The fields off the coasts of Scotland are among the most costly in the world, and extraction costs have risen sharply in recent years. Many fields are not profitable at an oil price of $70 and lower.
“Retrenchment and cutbacks there will almost certainly be.
“Across the wider economy, though, there will be significant benefits for households and businesses alike. A fall in fuel prices is particularly welcome to many of Scotland’s rural businesses and those with high transport and distribution costs.
“An oil price forecast to average $80 a barrel over 2015 could help to counter the wider global slowdown. But we do need governments to be assisting this sector with real and tangible support.”