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Two totally different votes

John Swinney
John Swinney

In just 24 hours, polling booths around the country will open for the latest Scottish Parliament elections.

Normally I’d at least be a little bit excited by the prospect.

And usually, there would be at least a little nervousness within the massed ranks of Scottish business at what a vote could bring.

But this time round there’s been nothing.

No pre-election jitters, no anxiety, no sense of dread at what may await.

And that is because the Scottish elections in 2016 are a foregone conclusion and the business community knows what they are going to get.

The SNP will win.

Nicola Sturgeon will return as First Minister and John Swinney will be there at her side, ready once again to take up his beloved levers and continue to steer the steady economic course that he has plotted out these past years.

There will be no shock for the SNP.

There will be no seismic shift away from them. It will be steady as she goes.

As such, let me be the first to publicly commend the SNP on their victory.

And lets hope Mr Swinney – who has his critics but is generally viewed as being a safe pair of hands at the tiller – continues to chip away at the obstacles standing in the way of Scottish business.

Obstacles such as too much red tape strangling enterprise.

Obstacles such as difficulty in accessing growth finance and the increasing skills gaps in key areas of the economy.

Rates also remain a killer for many and I’d like to see a stepping up of the reform agenda.

But if I was granted but one request by the returning Holyrood powers-that-be, it would be to ensure that our schools are enterprise aware.

If Scotland is to be a true innovation nation then we need to expose and engage our young people in entrepreneurial activity at an early an age as possible.

We need to ensure that pupils are taught there are more paths open to them in life than university and joining the rat race.

Attaching an experienced business mentor to every single secondary school in Scotland would be a great start in inspiring and enthusing the next generation of home-grown entrepreneurs – although I appreciate it is easier said than done.

But, while I expect the Scottish elections to pass without any great ructions, there is another vote on the horizon that is starting to cause greater unease.

Next month’s EU referendum is starting to make waves.

My reading of the runes is that Scotland’s business community is largely of the Remain persuasion and that position is unlikely to change significantly in the coming weeks.

But it is a much less settled picture south of the border and, while the prospect of an EU Leave vote may still be unlikely come June 23, the odds are certainly shortening.

That has put the wind up many major business organisations and, in a similar manner to what was seen before the Scottish independence referendum, there is evidence that some companies are holding back on investment to see what transpires.

Figures last week showed that UK GDP growth slowed to just 0.4% in the first quarter of 2016.

While the EU referendum was only announced in February, analysts believe the Brexit effect did influence the data.

That is a worry as the UK cannot afford for its recovery from the downturn to be derailed.

Britain’s status within the EU is now for the electorate to decide.

But the consequences of that decision will be far-reaching, whatever the outcome may be.