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Scottish Enterprise Overhauled
During a statement to parliament,
Cabinet
Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, John Swinney said
that re-energised enterprise networks will be the firm foundation on
which increased, sustainable economic growth is built in Scotland.
The changes would make Scottish Enterprise (SEn) and Highlands
and Islands Enterprise (HIE) - More clearly focused on the goal of delivering
sustainable economic growth; and more responsive to the needs of businesses
and the Scottish economy as a whole.
The proposals also include the transfer into
SEn - initially on a joint venture basis - of the business and innovation
grant functions, such as Regional Selective Assistance, currently delivered
by the Scottish Government

NEW
Government
On May 3rd 2007 a new Scottish Government
was formed following close fought elections.

On May 16 Alex Salmond MSP was elected
First Minister by the Scottish Parliamen
Newly appointed within the new administration as Minister
for Enterprise, Energy & Tourism is Jim Mather, MSP.

As Shadow Enterprise and Economy Minister,
he was a member of the SNP's Shadow Cabinet.

£48.9M in RSA
Allied
Vehicles gets RSA of £600,000
More than 7,300 Scottish jobs
could be created or safeguarded with the aid of £48.9m in Regional
Selective Assistance (RSA) funding, said Jim Mather,
during a visit to Glasgow-based firm Allied Vehicles, which has recently
accepted an RSA offer of £600,000 towards the expansion of
its Possilpark premises.

Scotch Whisky for Korea
Enterprise Minister, Iain Gray, welcomed
news that Scottish company Edrington, best known for The Famous Grouse
and The Macallan whiskies, has signed a major agreement to supply a new
range of Scotch whisky to South Korea, the world's largest market for
deluxe Scotch.
The long-term partnership with Hite Group, South Korea's leading alcoholic
beverage distribution company, is designed to capture a major share of
the Korean market and the privately-owned group will spend £3m
to develop new capacity at its bottling plant at Great Western Road,
Glasgow to meet anticipated demand.

SE will support, assist and even bully - says Crawford
Scottish Enterprise chief executive Robert Crawford said he would not
allow the electronics industry in Scotland to flounder. He said: "Scottish
Enterprise will support, assist and even bully, where necessary, to help
the industry find a path through these challenging times.

£4M awarded under UK Coal Operating
Aid Scheme
Four coal mines in England and Scotland are set to receive
over £4m of Government aid following European Commission approval
today. This takes the total amount of aid approved under the UK Coal Operating
Aid Scheme to over £142 million.

A big opportunity for SME's to diversify says
Walker
Adrian Walker, the newly appointed director of Electronics Scotland: "There’s
also a big opportunity for SME's to diversify - while the PC industry
may have reached a degree of maturity in terms of commodities, there
are many potential opportunities in other sectors to develop products
and markets.

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 27.09.2007
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