Economy
Fears over 'Biggest Data Centre on Earth' being located in Scotland
Author / Creator: Beth Templeton
Media type: Newspaper article
Date published:
Concerns have been raised at Amazon's plans to develop three huge data centres in Central Scotland.
Not only do they consume huge amounts of power, but local groups are concerned that their demand for water will overpower their local supplies and infrastructure.
The cost of dependence: The hidden price of the union
Author / Creator: David Murray
Media type: Opinion
Date published: 2026
Dependence on Westminster costs ordinary Scots dearly: austerity, health crises, and learned helplessness
Driving Growth: Innovation and Sustainability in Scotland
Author / Creator: Driving Growth: Innovation and Sustainability in Scotland
Media type: Report
Date published: 2025
Energy transition and digital transformation present enormous opportunities
INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY ZONES Area based incentives to stimulate economic growth
Author / Creator: Dave Watson
Media type: Policy Paper
Date published: 2025
Industrial strategy zones encompass free ports, investment zones, and industrial strategy zones. Are these adaptable to Scotland?
Five ways Westminster’s 'growth' plan says Scotland would be better off independent
Author / Creator: Business for Scotland
Media type: Article
Date published: 2025
Westminster's growth plan offered Scotland only crumbs from London's table.
Independence is Good for Business: Economic Policy
Author / Creator: Business for Scotland
Media type: Article
Date published: 2025
Scottish businesses operate under economic conditions not shaped in line with Scotland’s needs
This graph should be a rocket up the independence movement's backside
Author / Creator: Robin McAlpine
Media type: Article
Date published: 2025
Scotland’s position should shock you.
We are almost exactly as wealthy as the eurozone countries but we’re exporting wealth at twice the rate of even the most indebted poor countries.
Expert debunks everything you've been told about GERS and the Scottish 'deficit'
Author / Creator: Richard Murphy
Media type: Newspaper article
Date published:
The GERS figures present the UK government's view of whether Scotland could afford to be an independent nation.
Professor Richard Murph takes a look at the numbers and explains why the figures are inaccurate and don't represent the truth about the economy in a new Scotland.
His starting position is this:
The Scottish Government balances its books.
Every single council in Scotland balances its books.
Every public agency that is reflected in jurors balances its books.
Independence and a wellbeing economy
Author / Creator: Jim Osborne
Media type: Article
Date published: 2025
What would a wellbeing economy mean for Scottish independence and how could it be achieved?
Scotland’s Economy: the case for independence
Author / Creator: Scottish Government
Media type: Report
Date published: 2014
For centuries Scotland has been at the heart of global economic innovation. This is no longer the case.
Building the Local Economy
Author / Creator: Dave Watson
Media type: Report
Date published: 2024
Governments and councils focus too narrowly on retail operations when developing policies for the local economy.
The Scottish election: my conclusion after talking to all three pro-independence parties
Author / Creator: Richard Murphy
Media type: Video
Date published:
A video interviewing leading politicians from the SNP, the Scottish Greens and Alba about their economic approaches to the forthcoming General Election proved to be an interesting experience.
The National gave Murphy the opportunity to interview Drew Hendry of the SNP, Neale Hanvey of Alba and Ross Greer of the Scottish Greens.
Update: what big policy challenges face Scotland’s next first minister?
Author / Creator: Stuart Mcintyre
Media type: Article
Date published:
Humza Yousaf, Scotland’s first minister has recently stepped down. His successor, John Swinney, faces a number of economic challenges related to growth, an ageing population, regional inequality and the transition to net zero.
How would an independent Scotland borrow?
Author / Creator: Thomas Pope
Media type: Report
Date published: 2021
This report examines how Scotland would
borrow if it were to become independent.
It looks at how much it could borrow
consistently, based on the experience of
other advanced economies.
Swinney must move beyond old orthodoxies
Author / Creator: Laurie Macfarlane
Media type: Article
Date published:
John Swinney, Scotland’s new first minister, faces no shortage of challenges. Lurking behind many of them lies a common cause: an economy that is not working.
How are the UK’s devolved nations faring ahead of the general election?
Author / Creator: Robyn Smith
Media type: Article
Date published:
Over the current parliamentary term, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have each faced unique challenges as well as common ones, such as rising economic inactivity. Measures of output, productivity and the labour market indicate where the devolved nations could improve their economic prospects.
Independence lessons: How Ireland built a strong economy
Author / Creator: Believe in Scotland
Media type: Article
Date published:
Ireland is a stable and prosperous independent country. It has used the powers of independence to build a strong and diverse economy.
Scottish economy expected to improve after slow growth in 2023
Author / Creator: Mairi Spowage
Media type: Article
Date published:
The economists are forecasting growth of 0.6% in 2024, 1.1% in 2025 and 1.2% in 2026. Whilst these forecasts are slightly weaker than previous forecasts, it still points to improving conditions in the economy over the course of this year.
On Surprises, Strategy, the Economy and What Comes Next for Scottish Independence
Author / Creator: Iain Docherty
Media type: Article
Date published:
Nicola Sturgeon's resignation as First Minister and leader of the SNP has thrown Scottish politics into flux. But beneath the superficial media coverage and frenetic party politics that followed her resignation, the fundamentals of the constitutional debate remain unaltered. One of these fundamentals, the extent to which Scotland is better or worse off being part of the UK political economy, is rarely debated in the depth it deserves.
Now is the time to deliver a new era for Scotland’s fishing fleet
Author / Creator: Struan Stevenson
Media type: Article
Date published:
ROCKETING ENERGY PRICES, exacerbated by the illegal war in Ukraine, have hit people and businesses across the UK, especially those that are highly dependent on energy, such as the fisheries and aquaculture sectors.