Backing Scotland’s Businesses - A Plan for Growth

Fife plays a strategic role in Scotland’s national economy, with significant opportunities and established strengths in hydrogen, advanced manufacturing, and exports. To fully capitalise on this potential and secure long-term prosperity, the region requires an operating environment that actively encourages investment and removes barriers to expansion. By championing these high-growth areas, Fife can drive high value job creation and act as a cornerstone for Scotland’s wider economic ambitions.

Central to unlocking this economic capacity is the delivery of modern infrastructure and a more agile regulatory system. Accelerating grid connectivity, streamlining planning approvals, and delivering strategic transport upgrades are essential priorities. Together, these improvements will lower the cost of doing business, connect local firms to global markets, and ensure the region has the physical foundations required to support energy-intensive and manufacturing industries.

Sustaining this growth depends on cultivating a highly skilled, adaptable workforce. Businesses across Fife are currently facing acute labour shortages that threaten to constrain productivity and limit investment. By strengthening employer led skills alignment and working closely with local education and training providers, the region can ensure that businesses have access to the specific talent they need to innovate, transition to net zero, and compete on the international stage.

Businesses in Fife are calling for:
• Accelerated grid and transport delivery to support the region’s nationally strategic industries and improve market connectivity
• A streamlined planning system to unlock investment and remove regulatory barriers to business expansion
• Targeted support to scale Fife’s capabilities in hydrogen, advanced manufacturing, and export markets
• Employer-led skills alignment to directly address acute labour shortages and equip the local workforce for the future

Read more here.