Initial Budget Response

News Release 14th November 2007

Yesterday, the Sustainable Development Commission, along with much of Scotland, was waiting to hear the result of the Scottish Government's Strategic Spending Review. We were particularly keen as much had been said, both pre- and post-election, about creating a sustainable economy.

We welcome the clear definition of what the Government means by 'sustainable economic growth':

"Building a dynamic and growing economy that will provide prosperity and opportunities for all, while ensuring future generations can generations can enjoy a better quality of life."

Prior to this definition, many seemed to be interpreting the phrase as just increasing and then sustaining the rate of economic growth in Scotland - whereas this couldn't be farther from the truth.

When aiming for a truly sustainable economy, better quality of life must not only consider economic prosperity but also the nation's health, happiness and impact on the environment.

There is, however, still some way to go before a clear pathway is identified to ensure that the economy is to rest within ecological limits - this aspect of sustainable growth needs further development to be convincing. In particular, it remains unclear how the Government will manage to grow the economy while reducing greenhouse gases in line with manifesto commitments.

Professor Jan Bebbington said:

"We were pleased to see the Government has accepted the recommendation from our 'state of the nation' report and will be winding up the Air Route Development Fund."

"However on other areas of transport, the direction of travel requires further consideration. For instance, the planned investment in expanding the road network will only be in accordance with the principles of sustainable development if the greenhouse gases emitted from this is reduced somewhere else in the Scottish economy. There are no clues yet as to how this will be achieved."

"The review also acknowledges the other clear challenges which must be tackled by making clear links between a sustainable economy, reducing social inequalities and environmental limits. The adoption of ecological footprint as a national target, calculating whether we are living within the means of the planet, means for the first time we will know whether Scotland is making progress in moving away from our three planet lifestyle.

"There are some positive signs coming from the Scottish Government but we all know that the devil is in the detail and it will take some time for the detail to emerge which will truly show whether Scotland is moving in the right direction ."

Link for more information on the Scottish Government's economic strategy