Oil & Gas futures
Referendum-related politicking got off to a brisk start this week with the visit of not one but two sets of cabinets ministers to the north east to flag up opportunities and risks in the oil and gas sector.
The Westminster case – made from Shell’s Aberdeen base – that industry is better off supported by the UK’s “broad shoulders” was underpinned by the launch of Sir Ian Wood’s long-awaited commission report on how best to maximise revenues. In Sir Ian’s view, a new regulator, a shared industry strategy and better collaboration in general between government and industry could deliver an extra £200m in added value to the economy over the next two decades.
For the Scottish Government, meeting a few miles down the road in Portleven, the industry would be better off run in Scotland (a new 300-strong energy department split between Aberdeen and Glasgow is mooted), and they’re willing to stump up £10.6 million for a new Oil and Gas Innovation Centre to meet the future head-on.
All sides agree though, that the Wood Commission proposals should be acted upon because the price for the wider economy of not doing so is difficult to contemplate. We’ll know who gets to do that on 19 September.
Financial Services
First Minister’s Questions were dominated by the contents of a short statement from Edinburgh-headquartered insurer Standard Life that it felt “a responsibility to understand the implications of independence for our customers and other stakeholders and to take whatever action may be necessary to protect their interests”, and that it was exploring the possibility of moving some of its 5,000 staff out of Scotland as “a purely precautionary measure”.
We’ve had warnings before that some key players in financial services are making contingencies should independence deliver levels of uncertainty (particularly around currency and regulation) that they aren’t happy with. This is the first time those warnings have been so explicitly made in financial reporting to shareholders; another sign that the so-called ‘Three Chancellors’ intervention ruling out a currency union was a game-changer.
Elsewhere…
Leaving aside the referendum, there was plenty of other business at Holyrood to get our teeth into.
As the Three Chancellors found out, these are the tough times for the idea that identical second or even third opinions should carry particular credence in the minds of people in Scotland. So, a Stage 1 debate on the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill, which saw opposition parties attempt to pass an amendment to retain corroboration in judicial cases, captured the attention. In the end the amendment was defeated, spelling relief for Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill.
.jpg "Peter Smyth, Account Director - Indigo")
And elsewhere, the Health and Sport Committee looked at progress on ongoing reform of the system of access to new medicines on the NHS. Indigo client Beating Bowel Cancer has been campaigning intensively for an end to the postcode lottery that still prevails around medicines access in some NHS areas in Scotland. That should be set to change when reforms are introduced in May, but as the committee heard, the devil is in the details. Ultimately it will be patients and specialist clinicians who tell us whether they’ve worked properly or not.
Peter Smyth
Account Director, Indigo