Look at Scotland

Scotland has a population of just over 5 million people (expected to increase over the next decade due to migration and reduce thereafter) in an area of 30,000 square miles that includes 600 square miles of freshwater lochs. Maximum distance from north to south is 275 miles and from east to west 150 miles. It has 2,300 miles of coast, 800 islands (130 inhabited) and a 60-mile land border with England. It also now has a Scottish Nationalist First Minister.

Household numbers are steadily increasing due to more people living alone, one-parent families and smaller households. Scotland’s population is ageing, with an increase in the number of households headed by people aged 60 and over estimated to reach 1 million by 2024, and those headed by someone aged 85 or over projected to double over the same period to 120,000.

A total of 30 per cent of all private-sector workers are managers, 11 per cent are supervisors, 23 per cent are skilled and semi-skilled, 12 per cent are unskilled and 6 per cent work for themselves; leaving nearly 20 per cent long-term unemployed. There is an average of 165 people per square mile, with the majority living in the central area around Glasgow (population 1 million) and Edinburgh (population 500,000).

Gross domestic product (GDP) is around £82 billion (more than £16,000 a head, with gross annual full-time income more than £22,500) for a labour force of just over 2.5 million people (76 per cent of all those of working age and an increase of more than 4 per cent over the last ten years). Scotland is fourth out of the 12 UK regions in terms of employment rates and fifth in terms of economic activity. Total expenditure for Scotland is £41 billion, while total receipts (excluding North Sea revenues) are £32 billion, leaving a net deficit of £9 billion that is found through borrowing. Last year, the Scottish economy grew by 2.6 per cent with output in the service sector growing by 2.9 per cent, compared to a small decrease in production and a 6.4 per cent rise in construction.

Scotland lacks a critical mass of larger businesses, and a key challenge is growing and sustaining businesses of scale. In 2006, there were 265,000 private-sector enterprises operating in Scotland, with associated employment of 1.9 million, while the 2,250 large enterprises operating in Scotland accounted for just over 56 per cent of turnover. The total number of enterprises has increased by over 30,000 (nearly 15 per cent) since 2000, but this figure conceals the fact that numbers of SMEs are rising, while numbers of larger enterprises are reducing.

Nearly 600,000 people work in Scotland’s public sector, an increase of more than 50,000 in the last decade, with more than 1.9 million in the private sector. This public-sector employment divides into local government, including police, fire and related services (55 per cent), NHS (26 per cent), Civil Service (9 per cent), public corporations (5 per cent), non-departmental public bodies (2 per cent) and Armed Forces (2 per cent).

Scotland is home to over 150 aerospace-related companies, employing some 30,000 people in total, and accounting for 4 per cent of gross value added (GVA) in manufacturing. The chemicals industry has an annual output in excess of £3 billion, and employs 14,000 people. Construction turnover is around £11 billion, mostly concentrated in and around the main cities. Scotland’s 300 contact centres employ 60,000 people, while the digital media and creative industries are worth annual sales of £5 billion and provide up to 100,000 jobs.

The energy sector encompasses 2,000 businesses, with 110,000 jobs and £7.4 billion of output. The financial services industry accounts for over 113,000 direct jobs and is worth £6 billion. The food and drink sector has annual sales of around £6.5 billion and a workforce of 50,000 people.

Scotland has the second largest life science cluster in the UK, one of the biggest in Europe, with 590 organisations employing over 29,500 people, and a focus on human healthcare. Microelectronics and optoelectronics employ over 25,000 staff and contribute nearly £2 billion to Scotland’s GVA. The shipbuilding sector primarily manufactures and supports naval ships and specialist complex vessels, having 50 per cent of the UK’s naval shipbuilding and refit capacity.

Nearly 500 companies in the textiles industry employ 20,000 people, while tourism makes a significant contribution to the service sector. GVA has risen from £2.2 billion to £3 billion in just five years, with an 11 per cent increase in overseas visitors.

Sectors that have experienced significant growth recently include mining and quarrying, utilities, health and social work, business activities, real estate and renting, and community, social and personal services. Sectors in which there has been recent decline include the motor trade (plus vehicle repairs and fuel), manufacturing, business activities, and retail trade and repairs. Scotland’s top five export industries are food and drink, office machinery and computers, business services, chemicals, and telecommunications. The top five destinations are the USA, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Spain.

Scotland has 13 universities, six specialist higher education institutions and 43 further education colleges. There are more than 285,000 HE students (a 40 per cent rise in ten years) of whom 42 per cent gain undergraduate degrees and 21 per cent are awarded postgraduate qualifications. The rest are working for other qualifications. Although the number of FE students has decreased slightly, there are over 50,000 students in both HE and FE from overseas – many from China and India.