Dr Liz Cameron CBE – Director and chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce

SCC Chief Executive Liz Cameron called on the Scottish Government to focus on business rates, skills funding, and planning capacity, to support investment and economic growth.

The plea comes ahead of the Scottish Budget in January, following the allocation of an additional £820 million in the UK government’s Autumn Statement.

SCC’s quarterly surveys have shown steadily weakening business confidence, with firms reporting rising labour costs, taxation pressures, and declining investment intentions, particularly among SMEs.

Against this backdrop, SCC has set out its priorities:

1. Freeze business rates and urgently reform business rates revaluation
   SCC is calling for the basic rate of non-domestic rates to be frozen until 2028, alongside targeted relief for the most exposed sectors, including retail, hospitality and tourism.  Crucially, SCC is also urging the Scottish Government to pause the upcoming business rates revaluation as a matter of urgency. Scottish businesses currently pay £54.7 million more each year in business rates than comparable firms in England. SCC members are now warning that revaluation risks delivering sharp and unmanageable increases, which will call investment and hiring decisions into question.
2. Prioritise skills funding and delivery
   Businesses are increasingly raising concerns about workforce capacity across the economy. With colleges and universities facing funding pressures and skills gaps emerging in key sectors, SCC says January’s Budget should stabilise post-school education funding and embed employer engagement, skills alignment with economic demand within Tertiary Education and Training Bill strengthening employer engagement and better aligning skills provision with economic demand.
3. Improve planning capacity
   Delays and uncertainty in the planning system are increasingly holding back the delivery of homes, infrastructure and commercial development. SCC says the introduction of the National Planning Hub has been a positive step, further action is needed to address Scotland’s underlying shortage of planners. The organisation is calling for investment in the planning skills pipeline, including the expansion of the Future Planners Programme, and greater support for mid-career re-training, in line with UK Government commitments set out in the Autumn Statement.

Dr Liz Cameron CBE, director and chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said: “With the 2026 Holyrood elections coming into view, businesses want substance, not short-term gestures, in January’s Budget.

“Scotland needs a focus on creating the conditions for long-term economic growth, rather than eye-catching measures that offer temporary relief but do little to improve competitiveness.

“That means decisions that provide certainty and unlock investment: stability on business rates, a skills system aligned with employer demand, and a planning system with the capacity and skills needed to deliver homes, infrastructure and development. These are the measures that shape confidence and investment well beyond the next election.”