National Strategy for Economic Transformation Delivery Board minutes: 7 January 2026

Attendees and apologies

Present

• Kate Forbes MSP, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic (Co-Chair)
• Barry White (Co-Chair)
• Audrey Cumberford
• Jane Wood
• Claire Mack
• Ellis Watson
• Sir Simon Lister
• Màiri McAllan MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Housing
• Adam Morrison (Managing Director, Ocean Winds)
• Ana Stewart (Chief Entrepreneur, Scottish Government)

Supporting officials

• Gregor Irwin, DG Economy
• Aidan Grisewood, Director for Jobs and Wellbeing Economy
• Colin Cook, Director for Economic Development
• Michelle Quinn, Director for Offshore Wind
• Richard Rollison, Director for International Trade and Investment
• Sean Neill, Director for Housing

Apologies

• Gillian Docherty
• Douglas Millican
• Roz Foyer

Items and actions

Welcome 

Barry welcomed members to the last quarterly meeting of the board, noting that there will be an end-of-board dinner in March. Apologies from Gillian Docherty, Douglas Millican and Roz Foyer were noted and the minutes from the September meeting were agreed.

The Deputy First Minister (DFM) raised the upcoming Budget and noted the Scottish Spending Review, Infrastructure Strategy and Investment Pipeline would also be published to provide a comprehensive view of the public sector over the next three years. She recognised the highly challenging economic and fiscal situation. She cited optimism in certain areas e.g. tech sector, and commented that recent UK Government (UKG) tax decisions provide slight relief but will lead to significant decreases in subsequent two years. She outlined a significant increase in support for investment e.g. InvestScotland, with an emphasis on using data evidence to support investment decisions. Growth areas such as defence, housing and green renewables were also highlighted.

 

Update on Key Economic Delivery Strands 

Aidan Grisewood outlined focus remains on delivering PfG commitments ahead of the election, alongside budget priorities. 8 commitments have been completed with 30 fully on track to be completed. He noted 9 commitments are currently amber/green but confident that all May 2025 PfG commitments across the economy portfolio will be delivered this parliamentary term. He provided an update on wider NSET governance including a new infrastructure readiness priority project which was an action from the November Economic Growth Programme Board (EGPB). EGPB also discussed Scottish Income Tax, including findings from a Scottish Government (SG) initial evidence review on business competitiveness impacts. He also confirmed that the Scottish Futures Trust will be presenting at the next Cabinet Sub-Committee on Investment and Economy in March. 

Members raised the following

•    Regional Economic Partnerships (REPs), clarity sought on whether the absence of legislation has been the key factor in lack of progress. Organisation and resource were noted as bigger issues
•    recent tax conversations with stakeholders were flagged and members noted that any evidence available to support these discussions would be helpful

Housing Emergency Action Plan (HEAP)

Màiri McAllan MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Housing, described this first standalone ministerial housing role as instructive and provided an opportunity to take a deep dive into the sector. She highlighted the passage of the Housing Act and the Housing Emergency Action Plan (HEAP) as two key milestones since coming into post. HEAP outlines three key pillars; children, vulnerable communities and building optimum conditions for growth.

She emphasised the need for collaboration, with SG playing a key role by providing policy certainty, clear direction of travel, sufficient public funding, and ensuring money is spent well. Progress in these areas include a 10-year target alongside existing commitments on affordable homes, £4.9 billion of funding and changes to the regulatory environment i.e. planning work and mid-market rent controls. She highlighted a successful meeting with investors in London with the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB), Highland Council and Glasgow Council in attendance.

The Cabinet Secretary stressed the need to monitor build-to-rent activity, acknowledging positive sentiment but noted the importance of gathering clinical evidence. On regulations, she confirmed a freeze was not possible due to non-negotiable specifics such as fire and safety. She highlighted the need to balance the cost of net zero regulations, referencing Professor Griggs’ work, and stressed the importance of sequencing regulations to avoid lag effects.

Members raised the following

•    emphasised Scotland’s housing market remains a competitive advantage in comparison to England and maintaining this is important for the wider economy
•    expressed interest in how the build-to-rent community will respond to recent moves 
•    highlighted regulations as a major issue across the UK and suggested that the strengthening of the Business Regulatory Impact Assessment could be useful if regulations freeze is not forthcoming
•    observed strong positive sentiment among investors, who see Scotland as a good opportunity. Upcoming programme of work and agreed budget helps SG position itself to identify further actions needed to improve the overall chain
•    cautioned against confirmation bias and urged an objective look at evidence. Important to monitor investor actions, noting signs of refinancing of major housing projects 
•    noted that previously frozen investment has now been released following recent changes to controls
•    questions about unintended consequences of removing rent control on mid-market rent (MMR) were raised, including whether this could lead to decoupling and people moving from social housing into MMR
•    land reform noted as a key issue and called for stronger efforts to shift land ownership toward public ownership
•    concerns raised around current approach of using public sector land to create cash rather than value, noting that Edinburgh has 60% of Scotland’s social housing need but only receives 9% of grant funding. It was suggested that changing how land is used could help address this imbalance
•    stressed the importance of ensuring a parallel link between this the SG’s work on Skills planning
•    acknowledged pressures around the Heat and Buildings Bill decision and  next best option is to adopt a “do no harm” approach. New buildings should proceed and any retrofit programmes should be commenced as easily as possible
•    encouraged to see SNIB’s involvement in this area
•    called for clarity on timescales for SMEs as support would be welcome for builders in more rural areas
•    stressed the need to assess and score HEAP’s impact and ensure transparency on measures

 

Increasing Investment Programme 

Richard Rollison highlighted significant progress over the last 12–18 months. The introduction of Invest Portal provides an important resource for investors and Scotland now has a systematic approach to investment. The bond programme was designed to engage investors, and the credit rating announcement helped raise Scotland’s profile. 

Officials provided an update on the Invest Portal, which has been improved and simplified for market users. Since launch, page views have increased by 120%. Currently, 12 projects are being marketed to investors, with expectations to grow to 20 in the next 1–2 months. The pipeline behind the portal is an SG-owned database, and early tracking shows significant private capital opportunities in a number of sectors such as grid infrastructure, offshore and onshore wind and data centres. This intelligence provides strong material for global investor engagement.

DFM commented on the scale of internal change, citing tech entrepreneurship as an example. She raised the question of empirical evidence to demonstrate impact and noted that taking risks, such as the credit rating decision, has changed how maturely Scotland is viewed externally.

Gregor Irwin stressed the direct link between the bond programme and wider investment activity. He emphasized that the next stage is critical, requiring repeated engagement with decision-makers who were involved in buying Scottish bonds, as these same individuals are interested in housing and the Invest Portal. He highlighted the importance of pipeline work for creating new disciplines that did not previously exist. While empirical evidence of benefits is not yet available, success will be measured by seeing these investments financed.

Members raised the following

•    praised the Invest Portal, describing progress as significant and foundations as strong. Emphasized the importance of building confidence and discipline
•    sought assurance on how ‘Team Scotland’ can operate as efficiently as possible given resource constraints within SG. Suggested sharpening communications to focus on Scotland’s transformational potential rather than limiting to more traditional branding
•    cautioned against ranking or rating opportunities without considering supply chain differences. 
•    highlighted Scotland’s unique grid opportunity and resource access, recommending a refresh of communications to improve delivery on the ground
•    noted that Scotland’s small size is an advantage, enabling agility and responsiveness which has been a key selling point highlighted by offshore wind sector feedback

 

Green Economy

DFM welcomed Adam Morrison, Managing Director for Ocean Winds to the meeting, reiterating the importance of  the sector as one of the biggest opportunities for Scotland. However, acknowledging that the opportunity currently feels at high risk. She provided assurances that SG is taking all possible action to reduce this risk and maximise the opportunity, although noting many of the major levers sit with the UK Government.

Claire highlighted that Scotland’s ambition in offshore wind was intentionally set high to establish global prominence. However, the auction rounds demonstrate how quickly the project pipeline can stall, making it difficult to sustain supply chain capability. 

They provided an overview of the Scottish Offshore Pipeline (fixed and floating)an overview of the Scottish Offshore risk register, noting that it sets out the varied levels of impact across each. They described a conflict between the supportive government vision and the internal workings of the energy market, which are not signalling the same confidence. They also flagged concerns with grid connection delivery, in particular lack of penalties for late grid delivery.

Michelle Quinn reflected on the broader reset work underway, highlighting consistent themes across government: policy certainty, regulatory certainty, and effective spending. The next 12 months are critical, with UK Government commitment to wider market reform essential. She reaffirmed that SG policy is clear and unambiguous in its support for offshore wind. She outlined progress on statutory regulatory reform, streamlined consenting processes, and alignment work with the UK Government. She noted that Scotland has unlocked £900 million of investment, supported by £150 million from SG, potentially enabling 5,000 jobs. She stressed that a sustained pipeline is needed to secure these benefits. There is strong governance and accountability in the sector, and SG aims to be as transparent as possible with partners. 

Members raised the following

•    sought clarity on how critical the next auction round is, and whether there is a prioritised list of solutions, noting that no single “silver bullet” exists
•    suggested giving offshore wind further focused attention by members via a subsequent meeting
•    raised concerns about electricity prices relative to other countries and expressed a desire to better understand and challenge Ofgem’s mandate

Entrepreneurship

Colin Cook noted that the consistent and coherent policy approach initiated by Mark Logan and now driven by Ana Stewart has significantly improved entrepreneurship activity in Scotland. Scotland now fared well against international benchmarks and whilst nothing could be taken for granted, it was an encouraging sign that attention is now shifting to the support we might provide to enabling successful start-ups to scale.  

Ana Stewart began by recognising her task has been to continue the work already set out and gave credit to SG for focusing attention on entrepreneurship and building Scotland as a “start-up nation.” . Her key takeaway is that Scotland is strong at creating start-ups but needs to focus on founders and supporting them through scaling. She outlined three priorities, including alignment with the private sector (i.e. identify and track founders, including the top 50 scalers), building relationships with founders to understand what scaling firms need (i.e. talent) and robust data and evidence to measure performance and identify which sectors are thriving or struggling. She noted the significant opportunity in Scotland and the potential for major progress in the next 12 months.

Members raised the following

•    the importance of mentorship support in the scale up phase 
•    support for the Pathways Report and a determination that it continues to move ahead at speed
•    a mixed picture in respect of the role that universities are playing in the start-up ecosystem.  Some institutions have embedded entrepreneurship into their culture, but this is not universal
•    the signal that a joint venture fund would send in terms of the economic significance of research and universities in general 
•    the need to attract investment into the scale up journey if Scotland is to retain growing companies and the talent that leads them 

Close 

DFM closed the meeting by thanking all members for their contributions. 

 

Actions

•    action 1: Ellis to work with Directorate for Economic Development (Anne-Marie Martin) to consider how to better enable regional decision making
•    action 2: Cabinet Secretary for Housing to provide update on Professor Griggs review, in particular work on regulations
•    action 3: Further meeting to discuss offshore wind matters soon after the next auction round (14 January) to be arranged. NSET Delivery Board members invited to participate but attendance not compulsory. The meeting is now scheduled for Wednesday 11 February
•    action 4: Chief Economist to look at the current data on start-ups and scale ups and consider whether further enhancements to current measures can be made
•    action 5: DFM requested a summary of board contributions over the past 5 years to form part of the wider lessons learned work and to recognise the collective impact of the board’s input