Scotland is to receive a share of £250 million in Defence Growth Deals, with ministers promising jobs, innovation and investment across the nation’s defence sector.
The initiative was unveiled as part of the UK Government’s new Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS).
Defence Secretary John Healey said the policy would “make defence an engine for growth in Scotland, backing jobs, industry and innovators.” He argued that Defence Growth Deals represent a “new partnership with UK defence to build on industrial and innovation strengths that regions already hold.”
Healey added: “Together we aim to drive an increase in defence skills and jobs across Scotland. We want to make the UK the best place in the world to start and grow a defence firm and will put Britain at the leading edge of innovation.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves described the deals as “a plan for good jobs paying decent wages in Scotland and beyond.” She said the government intends to “unleash the power of local economies while securing our country – building an economy that works for working people, in every part of this country, just as our Plan for Change promised.”
Scotland Office figures show more than 11,000 people are already employed through Ministry of Defence spending in Scotland. The government says the new programme will expand that base by linking industry, research and government in a long-term partnership.
Douglas Alexander, Secretary of State for Scotland, called the deal “the defence dividend.”
“The UK Government’s Defence Industrial Strategy will mean a real boost for Scotland’s economy and create highly skilled jobs for years to come. Just last week we saw a £10 billion shipbuilding contract come to Clydeside – that is a fantastic example of what can be achieved with a government committed to ensuring Scotland benefits from the global rise in defence spending. Scotland’s defence sector is second to none, and our Defence Industrial Strategy will help ensure it has a thriving future.”
The government highlighted Scotland’s mix of strengths, from its shipbuilding heritage on the Clyde and at Rosyth to its growing space sector and research hubs at Glasgow and Strathclyde universities. These clusters, ministers argue, make the nation well placed to benefit from defence investment.
The detailed Scottish Defence Growth Deal will be announced in the coming months following talks with the devolved government and industry. Areas expected to feature include skills, innovation, procurement and supply chain alignment, and targeted investment to unlock both economic and strategic value.
Instead of inventing defence funds for Scotland that don’t exists it might be better if the current government doesn’t go around sacking very popular and highly competent Secretary’s of state for Scotland only to hire them back in nonsense roles one day later.
Scotland returned significantly more labour MP’s per head than England at the last election and completely rejected the SNP.
Sir Keir should remember that,
Morning Jim, to be fair this article has taken a UK wide Defence Growth Deal and given it a Headline Scottish Bias.
Slant would be a better word than bias
There has been enermous defence regeneration in Scotland on the Clyde Rosyth and don’t forget Lossiemouth in the recent decade or more by UK governments. This investment has rippled theough the Scottish economy to 400 plus companies (I think I read this here) Outsourcing from Govan has probably savef Ferguson Marine for the time being.
The SNP party were dismissive and hostile Remember them rubbishing how many frigates would be built Two new build halls and another coming at Rosyth
Six in build at one time with prefabricated blocks ready for more build
Wow the drum beat is there More orders please to keep it up
The thing is a good solid defence industry that generates orders is first build on supplying its home nation with the equipment.. defence exports are build on sovereign capability and capacity which is built on government orders and lots of them.
A picky point, but the helicopters shown on the graphics for this article look remarkably like Pumas, which were withdrawn from service, without replacement, earlier this year.
I thought they look a bit like a Mi 8.
More than likely Bristow’s Rig Taxi’s given the Scottish flag background.
S92 ?
I can see where you’re coming from!
Looks a bit too long though for a Puma.
BBC running this too.
Makes a change to see a UK wide Defence report on there.
Quick question for you ship building experts out there. With the decision by Norway to purchase T26 and with a bit of luck, Denmark and Sweden to purchase the T31, where will the MRSS be built? Both the Clyde and Rosyth will be at maximum capacity. Belfast, I’m assuming will be at capacity with the upcoming FSS. We have nowhere else and even if some bright spark decided to expand facilities, it would take considerable time to bring them online. An interesting conundrum we now face!
An interesting conundrum. Belfast is expanding and metal should start to be cut fairly soon, but if they won MRSS they would have to invest a lot in expansion to run the programme concurrently with FSS. There is Cammell Laird, I know they haven’t built a ship for a few years, but still more recently than Harlands, and they are building quite large blocks for Bae on the T26 contracts. The basis for expansion is there, but could it be achieved? I suppose one possibility is that they are used to consolidate blocks built elsewhere, such as Appledore, or Methil.
I read on another site that RAF Luton are building a new Dry Dock.
They will be using HS2 for Delivery.
I don’t know, ask Grinch, He’s the shipbuilding expert on here.
72 mate. At a pinch….😉
Where is the ‘ENGLISH Defence Growth Deal’…..all ENGLAND gets out of this ‘Deal’ is blah blah hot air….. again.
.LABOUR utterly despise ENGLAND and today they have proved it even more.
Where is the ‘ENGLISH Defence Growth Deal’…..all ENGLAND gets out of this ‘Deal’ is blah blah hot air….. again.
.LABOUR utterly despise ENGLAND and today they have proved it even more. Time for an ‘English National Party’ and the independence of ENGLAND.
There were 5 areas highlighted.
2 are in England.
1 in Wales.
1 in Scotland.
1 in Northern Ireland.
Seems fair enough to me. Defence industry should be spread around all nations of the UK.
I agree that parts of the far left of the Labour party don’t seem keen on either England, or the UK for that matter.
But that’s not apparent here at all?
This news was widely reported on other sites including the BBC but It’s been given a Scottish Bias/Slant here. I feel that the comment from CC probably reflects this due to the lack of actually reading the Article properly.