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Gross mortgage borrowing of £12.4 billion in December was 24 per cent higher than a year ago and overall new borrowing in 2015 was some 6 per cent higher than the previous year, according to figures released today by the British Bankers Association. The number of mortgage approvals in December was

Occupier demand for commercial property in Scotland remained firm during the last quarter of 2015, according to the latest RICS Commercial Market Survey Q4 2015. The office sector was particularly strong, with a net balance of 50 per cent more respondents reporting growth in demand, while the retail

The commission was tasked with looking at how the Scottish Parliament could use new and existing powers to boost economic growth. Recommendations made included:

The number of domestic tourist visits to Scotland jumped nine per cent, to around 12.9 million, in the year to the end of September 2015. The Great Britain Tourism Survey published today also shows that expenditure on domestic tourism visits - visitors from Scotland, England and Wales staying for at

Friends Reunited, the online social networking pioneer bought by ITV for £175 million and then sold to Dundee publishing company DC Thomson, is to close. Steve Pankhurst, one of the site’s founders, said it is still used by some but is “no longer used for the purpose it was built for”.

The latest figures show the highest employment level for Scotland on record, with a 21,000 rise in the employment level compared to the previous quarter, taking the number of Scots in work to 2,631,000. The employment rate has increased to 74.9 per cent, a lift of 1.2 percentage points over the quar

Demand for professional contractors in Scotland increased by 3 per cent in the 12 months to December 2015, a substantial difference to the UK average of -4 per cent, according to the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo). The data, provided by recruitment software company, Innovanta

The Court of Session has found in favour of Clydesdale Bank in a case over mis-sold SME loans, despite the bank admitting that the fixed-rate tailored business loan (TBL) in question was not suitable for the customer. Former Clydesdale business customer John Glare went to the Court of Session in 201

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has today voted for no change to UK interest rates, to leave them unchanged again at 0.5 per cent. Eight of the nine rate-setters on the committee voted to hold the record low of 0.5 per cent that has been in place since March 2009, with one voti

Scotland’s private sector has returned to expansion territory driven by a slight increase in new business, according to the Bank of Scotland’s Survey data for December. However, the rate of growth was only marginal and staffing numbers contracted during the last month of 2015 for the first time

Ian Blackford The SNP has called on the UK Government to set up an independent commission to investigate how changes to the state pension will effect both men and women.

Liz Cameron Scotland’s flagship services sector was been hit by falling UK and overseas sales during the the final quarter of last year.

George Lowder Three of the most senior positions in the Scottish transport sector have been filled, following the recruitment of a Transport for Edinburgh chief executive, a managing director of Lothian Buses and a general manager for Edinburgh Trams.

Simon Rubinsohn House prices in Scotland will see an average increase of 4 per cent over the course of next year and 6 per cent across the UK, according to the RICS housing forecast for 2016.

There were 8,500 loans made to first-time buyers in Scotland during the third quarter of 2015 - a 4 per cent rise on the previous quarter and a 16 per cent year-on-year increase, according to latest Council of Mortgage Lender data. The CML figures show that loans made to first-time buyers in Scotlan