Scottish Enterprise unveils £52million RSA jobs boost

Over 7,000 jobs are to be created or safeguarded in Scotland thanks to £52 million of Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) funding from Scottish Enterprise accepted in 2010/11.

This is an increase of over 1,800 planned jobs compared to the previous year when investment levels were broadly the same.

In total, 114 offers of RSA totalling £52 million were made to companies to support investment projects with planned capital expenditure of £234 million, for the period 2010/2011.

This is the first full financial year that Scottish Enterprise has been responsible for administering and awarding the grant directly. This means that RSA now forms part of a package of integrated support offered by Scottish Enterprise to companies with the potential to make the biggest difference to Scotland’s economic performance.

Other highlights in the 2010/2011 annual figures are:

• 55 per cent of the offers were made to Scottish owned companies. This included an award of £630,000 to James Callander & Son Ltd in Kincardine, Fife and an offer of £600,000 to the BenRiach Distillery Limited for a project in Newbridge, Midlothian.
• 68 per cent of accepted offers were to SMEs, with a total grant of £14.8million and the potential to create nearly 1,500 jobs.
• In total 11 offers of over £1m were accepted. The largest offer of £7million was to HP Enterprise Services UK Ltd to set up an IT Services Hub in Erskine, creating over 700 jobs.
• There was also support of £6.6million to Barclays Bank Plc to expand its investment banking and wealth management divisions in Glasgow, creating 600 new jobs.
• As part of a wider package of public sector support, online retailer Amazon accepted an offer of £1.4million to support the creation of nearly 700 jobs and the safeguarding of 80 more, at its new fulfillment and distribution centre in Dunfermline, Fife. This was in addition to RSA to support the company’s plans to create an additional 200 posts at its fulfillment centre in Gourock.
• In total 114 RSA awards were accepted in 2010/11. This was an increase from 107 in 2009/10 and 88 in 2008/09.
• Manufacturing was a significant beneficiary with nearly 2,000 jobs being created or safeguarded within the sector.
• Other sectors to benefit included creative industries, with awards to companies including Raise the Roof Productions and Outplay Ltd.

Commentating on the annual results, Crawford Gillies, chairman of Scottish Enterprise said:

"I am delighted to see that more than half of our RSA support this year went to Scottish-owned companies. Integrating these grants with our wider package of company support has made it easier to target Scotland’s most ambitious companies, while at the same time helping to build a stronger, more globally competitive economy.

"RSA also continues to be a key way we attract new investment to Scotland. Choosing where to locate or expand operations is a hugely important decision for any company. Many businesses have options as to where they locate and competition with other countries and regions has never been fiercer. These results clearly demonstrate that Scotland continues to be a highly attractive and competitive location on the global stage.

"Major attributes such as the skills of our workforce, our strengths in key sectors and our competitive business environment are ensuring we continue to be front of mind for companies looking to grow their operations."

Minister for Enterprise Fergus Ewing said:

"The Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise are working hard to promote Scotland as an attractive and competitive location to do business.

"Scotland has the quality infrastructure and skilled workforce to deliver success and this is demonstrated through major inward investments by Amazon, Vertex, Ryanair, Barclays and Hewlett Packard.

"Over the past year, Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) has supported the creation of more than 7,000 jobs and delivered £234 million of investment into Scotland’s economy. Economic growth is key to Scotland’s success and we will continue to work with business to capitalise on Scotland’s strengths and to secure new investment and jobs."

Click here for the RSA Annual Summary for 2010/11 along with the RSA Quarter 4 report

Case Study: Read more about how RSA is helping Controlled Therapeutics realise its growth ambitions

Crawford Gillies is available for interview by telephone this afternoon. Please contact the press office on 0141 228 2019.