Logistics UK response to the Scottish Budget - a 'missed opportunity to kickstart economic activity'

Tuesday 19 December 2023

Business group Logistics UK has reacted with disappointment to the failure of today’s Scottish Budget to acknowledge the role which the industry plays in underpinning all economic activity north of the border. As Alexandra Herdman, Senior Policy Manager explains, the Budget’s lack of funding for freight overlooks the key role logistics plays in building and supporting new and existing trading relationships.

“Today’s Scottish Budget is a missed opportunity to increase economic output and support new activity across the nation by reinforcing the nation’s freight capabilities,” she says. “No mention was made in the Budget of providing our sector with the assistance we need on new infrastructure or skills to ensure the continued growth of the economy. And while decarbonisation is a key policy priority for the Scottish Government, the shift to alternative transport modes, away from road, was also omitted.

“The Budget mentions support for the food and drink sector, but despite this being a feather in the Scottish economy’s cap, it cannot succeed without the support of a thriving logistics sector to connect producers with customers through a resilient supply chain. To ignore the contribution that our industry makes to the nation’s economic success, and remove all funding to expand the sector’s impact, is a retrograde step which will limit the opportunity for Scottish business to reach new markets and service existing customers.”

Logistics UK is one of the UK’s leading business groups, representing logistics businesses which are vital to keeping the UK trading, and more than seven million people directly employed in the making, selling and moving of goods. With decarbonisation, Brexit, new technology and other disruptive forces driving change in the way goods move across borders and through the supply chain, logistics has never been more important to UK plc. Logistics UK supports, shapes and stands up for safe and efficient logistics, and is the only business group which represents the whole industry, with members from the road, rail, sea and air industries, as well as the buyers of freight services such as retailers and manufacturers whose businesses depend on the efficient movement of goods.