ICAS ICAS logo

Quicklinks

  1. About Us

    Find out about who we are and what we do here at ICAS.

  2. Find a CA

    Search our directory of individual CAs and Member organisations by name, location and professional criteria.

  3. Careers

    Access current vacancies and understand what it’s like to work here at ICAS.

  4. Contact Us

    Get in touch with ICAS by phone, email or post, with dedicated contacts for Members, Students and firms.

Login
  • Annual renewal
  • About us
  • Find a CA
  • Careers
  • Contact us
  • Become a CA
  • CA jobs
  • SCABA
  • ICAS Foundation
  1. Members
    1. Become a member
    2. Manage my membership
    3. Benefits of membership
    4. Professional development
    5. Mentoring
    6. Member rewards
    7. CA jobs
    8. Area networks
    9. International communities
    10. Get involved
    11. CA Connect
    12. CA magazine
    13. Top Young CAs
    14. Career breaks
    15. The ICAS member app
    16. Newly admitted members 2021
    17. CA Wellbeing
  2. Become a CA
    1. How to become a CA
    2. Routes to becoming a CA
    3. CA Stories
    4. Find a training agreement
    5. Why become a CA
    6. Qualification information
  3. CA Students
    1. Studying with ICAS
    2. Timetables and exams
    3. Learning requirements
    4. Learning updates
    5. Learning blog
    6. Totum Pro | Student discount card
  4. Employers
    1. Become an Authorised Training Office (ATO)
    2. Resources for Authorised Training Offices (ATO)
    3. Professional entry
    4. Apprenticeships
  5. Thought leadership
    1. Technology
    2. Trust
    3. Talent
    4. Research
    5. CA Agenda podcast
    6. CA Agenda videos
    7. ICAS webinars
    8. CA Summit
  6. Professional resources
    1. Anti-money laundering
    2. Audit and assurance
    3. Brexit
    4. Charities
    5. Coronavirus
    6. Corporate and financial reporting
    7. Business and governance
    8. Ethics
    9. Insolvency
    10. Pensions
    11. Practice
    12. Public sector
    13. Sustainability
    14. Tax
  7. Regulation
    1. Complaints and sanctions
    2. Regulatory authorisations
    3. Guidance and help sheets
    4. Regulatory monitoring
  8. Governance
    1. At a glance
    2. Charter, rules and regulations
    3. Council
    4. Boards and key committees
    5. Public reporting
    6. Executive team
    7. Diversity
    8. Member research
  9. Contact us
    1. ICAS technical helpdesk
    2. ICAS logo request
  10. Careers
    1. Business centres
    2. Meet our team
    3. Benefits
    4. Vacancies
    5. Imagine your career at ICAS

Inward Investment Strategy for Scotland

  • LinkedIn (opens new window)
  • Twitter (opens new window)
By ICAS

26 November 2020

Main points:

  • Launch of new Inward Investment Strategy to internationalise Scotland’s economy.
  • Plan to focus efforts on nine key sectors.
  • New plan targeted on Scotland’s strengths.

A new, targeted inward investment plan has been launched that aims to further internationalise Scotland’s economy

The plan represents a fundamental shift in approach and focuses efforts on nine areas of opportunity where Scotland has global strengths and which offer significant future prospects.

Independent research suggests that the sectors identified are also likely to be among the most resilient to the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19). They include energy transition, health technology, the space sector and digital financial and business services.

Priority will be given to investors who can build local supply chains, provide new skills and invest in research. There will be an emphasis on the creation of regional clusters to encourage the spread of investment across Scotland.

The Scottish Government will focus resource on strategic investments, aiming ultimately to allocate up to £20 million a year. It is estimated the plan has the potential to increase GDP by £4.2 billion, boost exports by £2.1 billion over the next two decades and add up to £680 million a year to government revenues.

The revised approach seeks to deliver 100,000 jobs over the next decade.

The Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation Ivan McKee said:

“For the last seven years Scotland has attracted the most inward investment of any UK nation or region outside London. The time is right to build on these strong foundations.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for greater resilience in our economy and to build back better. Scotland’s Inward Investment Plan therefore represents a fundamental shift in focus.

“Our robust analytical approach has identified nine opportunity areas where Scotland’s genuine global strengths, often built on our academic excellence, align with global investment opportunities and offer the most potential to maximise economic benefits across the nation.

“We will build regional clusters of expertise around specific strengths, making Scotland a more attractive proposition for potential investors and ensuring all parts of the country benefit.

Background

Shaping Scotland’s Economy: Scotland’s Inward Investment Plan is available online.

The nine areas of opportunity identified in the plan are energy transition, decarbonisation of transport, food and drink innovation, software and IT, digital financial services, digital business services, space, health technology and the transformation of chemical industries.

In 2018, inward investors were responsible for 34% of employment in Scotland (624,000 jobs), 50% of turnover (£119.6 billion) and 77% of exports (£24.2 billion).

In May 2020, Scotland was named as the UK’s top destination outside of London for foreign direct investment in the EY Attractiveness Survey.


Share your views on the Strategy with ICAS

Hero image public sector

Directors’ case studies on their wider section 172 responsibilities

By Alice Telfer, Head of Business Policy and Public Sector, ICAS Policy Leadership

23 January 2020

ICAS publishes guidance on auditor evaluation

By Alice Telfer, Head of Business Policy and Public Sector, ICAS Policy Leadership

29 March 2019

2021-04-cpd 2021-04-cpd
ICAS logo

Footer links

  • Contact us
  • Terms and conditions
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Privacy notice

Connect with ICAS

  • Facebook (opens new window) Facebook Icon
  • Twitter (opens new window) Twitter Icon
  • LinkedIn (opens new window) LinkedIn Icon
  • Instagram (opens new window) Instagram Icon

ICAS is a member of the following bodies

  • Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (opens new window) Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies logo
  • Chartered Accountants Worldwide (opens new window) Chartered Accountants Worldwide logo
  • Global Accounting Alliance (opens new window) Global Accounting Alliance
  • International Federation of Accountants (opens new window) IFAC
  • Access Accountancy (opens new window) Access Acountancy

Charities

  • ICAS Foundation (opens new window) ICAS Foundation
  • SCABA (opens new window) scaba
ICAS logo

Our cookie policy

ICAS.com uses cookies which are essential for our website to work. We would also like to use analytical cookies to help us improve our website and your user experience. Any data collected is anonymised. Please have a look at the further information in our cookie policy and confirm if you are happy for us to use analytical cookies: