This is the new administration's principal strategy for Scotland, setting out the path to achieving its top priority of sustainable economic growth. 

The strategy identifies five Strategic Priorities that it regards as most critical to economic growth:

• Learning, Skills and Well-being
• Supportive Business Environment
• Infrastructure Development and Place
• Effective Government
• Equity

The strategy highlights the key components of increased growth - increased Productivity, Participation and Population. It also identifies this Government's desired characteristics of growth - Solidarity, Cohesion and Sustainability.

Forward Scotland welcomes the recognition of these 'desired characteristics' and the targets to reduce carbon emissions by 80% by 2050 and to narrow the gap in participation between Scotland's best and worst performing regions by 2017. However, the strategy falls short of pursuing sustainable development as a means of improving the economic, social and environmental wellbeing of Scotland and its people. Instead, it continues to regard sustainability as a separate factor to be considered as part of the pursuit for economic growth.

We look forward to examining the pending strategies for each of the government's remaining Strategic Priorities in the coming weeks, and would encourage the administration to address the challenges set out in the Sustainable Scotland Manifesto, published by Forward Scotland in May.

These challenges include introducing a new support programme for SMEs to invest in new, cleaner, more efficient technologies to go beyond the low/no cost actions at the heart of resource efficiency and thereby raise the potential for increased competitiveness.

Forward Scotland looks forward to continuing to work with the Scottish Government towards the pursuit of sustainable development as a means of improving the economic, social and environmental wellbeing of Scotland and its people.

View the Scottish Government press release here

Read the Economic Strategy here