Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has maintained that jobs will be the focal issue for Fife in 2011 and hinted that major inward investment could be on the way.
The Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath MP reckons Fife needs to create 10,000 jobs during the next decade and believes the burgeoning renewables sector could be key to prosperity.
In his New Year message, Mr Brown highlighted local businesses and local colleges working together to show how Fife can “win” in the global economy particularly in relation to the opportunities being thrown up by the renewables sector.
He even suggested Fife could be about to see a jobs boost soon after a globally-renowned company showed interest in what the region offered.
“I believe one major international firm is considering making a major investment in Fife and I know we could be the centre not just for wave and wind power but also for the carbon capture and storage industry of the future,” Mr Brown said, although he did not reveal from what source the investment may come.
“With the losses in local authority employment, it will be important that Fife does everything to win new jobs.”
He added, “So the work of Fife’s economic partnerships will be even more vital over the coming months and, with my colleagues, I will be doing everything to put Fife on the global map.”
While the firm Mr Brown referred to has not been named, Fife is at the forefront of developments in the renewable energy sector and aims to capitalise on a series of wind, wave and tidal power contracts.
Fife Council believes that more than 2000 new green jobs could be created in the region by 2020 through projects at the likes of Energy Park Fife in Methil and through carbon capture storage earmarked for Longannet, among others.Foreign interestBurntisland Fabrications (BiFab) has been one of the local firms to benefit hugely from the sector, having won several multi-million-pound contracts in the past year.
These included a £12m order to build two offshore sub-stations for RWE npower, a £2m contract from Norwegian tidal power developer Hammerfest Storm to construct the first of their advanced HS1000 tidal turbines in Scotland, and a £4m contract to build wave energy developer Aquamarine Power’s next-generation Oyster wave energy device all safeguarding 350 jobs at BiFab’s base at Energy Park Fife.
However, there have been murmurs of interest from a number of other companies outwith Fife in the local expertise.
Spanish energy giant Iberdrola, the parent company of ScottishPower, said it would invest £3 billion in Scottish renewable energy projects over the next two years, which is expected to benefit Fife yet again, while Chinese-backed offshore wind company XEMC Darwind is also understood to be considering a number of sites across Europe including one in Fife to build its five-megawatt turbines.
Fife’s public and private sectors have also joined forces to make the case for the region being funded as a base for the renewables industry, with five major firms backing a bid to the Scottish Government’s new £70 million National Renewables Infrastructure Fund.
Shepherd Offshore, Babcock, Forth Ports, Scarborough Muir and Briggs Marine have supported the drive to benefit from the fund, which was set up to strengthen port and manufacturing facilities for the manufacture of offshore wind turbines and related components.
It is expected to help deliver an estimated 28,000 jobs and £7.1 billion in value to Scotland’s economy over the coming decade.Renewables ‘buzz’Collieson Briggs, of Briggs Marine, said, “There is a real buzz about renewables in Fife at the moment.
“I strongly believe we have unrivalled support from local public sector organisations as well as the momentum to attract more big players to the region.”
He added, “Methil, Burntisland, Inverkeithing and Rosyth are all perfectly placed to benefit from this fund.”
While renewables jobs will no doubt be important, boosts to employment in every sector will be vital over the coming years and Mr Brown has also highlighted the need to attract jobs in high-quality office developments such as the John Smith Business Park in Kirkcaldy.
Mr Brown was similarly one of several MPs recently calling for the Ministry of Defence to end speculation that RAF Leuchars which employs many people in Fife both directly and through the supply chain may be closed to save money.
Mr Brown’s statement was greeted with hostility by Fife Council leader Peter Grant, with the SNP councillor suggesting the former prime minister had to shoulder some blame for the economic downturn and the savage cuts that councils are now facing.
“It’s disappointing but not surprising that there’s still not a word of apology for his part in getting us into this mess,” Mr Grant said.
“It’s also a pity that Mr Brown wasn’t statesmanlike enough to give any credit to either Fife Council or the Scottish Government for the part they’ve played in achieving some of the successes Mr Brown now seeks to associate himself with.”