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New Council of Economic Advisers
20/01/2012
A group of expert economic advisers to the Scottish Government has held its first meeting of the new Parliamentary session.
Today’s first meeting of the new Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) – which includes two Nobel Laureates – focused on the Scottish Government’s priorities of jobs and recovery, internationalisation and economic levers during a six-hour session in Edinburgh.
Eight members of the council joined First Minister Alex Salmond and Finance Secretary John Swinney at Bute House. They were joined via teleconference from New York by Nobel Laureate Professor Joseph Stiglitz, who will also attend a special session of the CEA in Aberdeen next month.
Crawford Beveridge has been appointed to the post of CEA chair.
Mr Salmond said:
"The Council of Economic Advisers includes some of the world’s foremost economists, academics and business people – including two Nobel Prize winners.
"They are giving their expertise free of charge to help us develop ways to grow the Scottish economy in the context of tough economic times across the UK and overseas.
"Next week the Scottish Government will publish our consultation on holding an independence referendum, which we will stage in autumn 2014. With independence we will gain the full economic powers required to stimulate the economy on Scotland’s terms.
"But until then we will keep working day and night on job creation and wider economic growth. The Scottish Government is making progress by investing in infrastructure now to stimulate growth and unlock a virtuous cycle of investment, growth, jobs and taxation revenue.
"That approach has helped Scotland weather a recession that was shorter and less sharp than elsewhere in the UK. The advice and experience of the CEA helps enormously to progress these priorities for Scotland.
"Our discussions today will focus on helping grow our economy, encourage job creation and seizing the opportunities available to Scotland internationally. These will continue to be our focus as we move forward."
Advice from the Council of Economic Advisers has already resulted in a positive impact for Scotland’s recovery – for example, contributing to the Scottish Government’s Economic Recovery Plan and endorsing the government’s approach to capital expenditure as a stimulus for economic growth, which helped Scotland to a recession that was shorter and shallower than in the rest of the UK (see background).
Mr Beveridge said:
"The Council of Economic Advisers brings together academics, economists and entrepreneurs to advise the Scottish Government on how to place Scotland among the world's most competitive economies.
"Today we have discussed the country's top three priorities as identified by the First Minister – jobs and recovery, internationalisation and economic levers.
"In the coming days the Scottish Government will publish its consultation on holding an independence referendum in autumn 2014, but we are in complete agreement with the First Minister that work goes on day and night until then on these economic priorities.
"My colleagues and I on the CEA look forward to working with the Scottish Government in the coming weeks and months to help grow the economy and give Scotland the best possible competitive edge internationally."
Background
Professor Joseph Stiglitz - Nobel Prize winning economist Prof Stiglitz was a member of the US Council of Economic Advisers from 1993-95, during the Clinton administration, and served as CEA chairman from 1995-97. He then became Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President of the World Bank from 1997-2000. In 2009 he was appointed by the President of the United Nations General Assembly as chair of the Commission of Experts on Reform of the International Financial and Monetary System, which also released its report in September 2009.
Crawford Beveridge - Former Executive Vice President and Chairman of Sun Microsystems in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. From 1991 to 2000, Crawford Beveridge served as Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise. He brings a wealth of international business experience.
Scotland’s recession lasted five quarters and GDP fell 5.9 per cent, while the UK recession lasted six quarters and GDP fell 7.2 per cent.