Report to the People
The Knowledge Economy
It used to be the case that you could not walk through Greenock without being presented with graphic reminders of the damage done by the decline of the traditional heavy industries. Shipyards closed; swathes of men were thrown on the employment scrap heap; families and communities suffered. The fact that we did not see this coming, and were not in a position to take pre-emptive action, is a matter of lasting regret.
We now live and work in an ever-changing global economy, where the high-tech industry of today could easily become the museum piece of tomorrow. This means that, if our economy and labour market are not sufficiently flexible and adaptable, any new industry could easily suffer the same fate as shipbuilding.
The only way to safeguard against this is to reject the low pay, low productivity, sweatshop vision of the past in favour of a high value, dynamic, responsive Knowledge Economy.
I was glad to have the chance to raise these issues in Parliament last week in a debate on the "Knowledge Economy." In essence, the Knowledge Economy represents a move from value being in plant and machinery to value being in people, knowledge and skills. It depends on having a highly skilled workforce, with the transferable skills and flexibility needed to adapt to market changes.
There are already positive signs in Inverclyde. We used to build ships, we now build microchips and computers. On Monday I met a former shipyard worker who is now a nurse in a newly built intensive care unit. I also know an ex-shipyard labourer who now teaches computer science at James Watt College.
This dynamism has rendered us the manufacturing export capital of Scotland and underpins our economic success. Unemployment is down, but more importantly, we must develop the flexibility to deal with unexpected changes in global industry. Embracing the Knowledge Economy will allow us to adapt and take advantage of these global changes – not fall victim to them.
It may seem obvious, but the key to delivering the Knowledge Economy is education.
Not simply education in schools and colleges, as important as that is, but also in the workplace. This will enable those who are in today’s labour market to create their own job security.
There are many examples of good practice and training projects to be found in Scottish industry. Measures which, I believe, will be crucial in delivering a modern knowledge-based economy for Scotland and promoting individual opportunity.
The new Scottish University for Industry is ideally placed to bring together employers and employees and increase access to education and jobs.
The Arbitration & Conciliation Advisory Service (ACAS) is already doing good work to create the partnerships that are vital to bring about a conflict-free learning environment in the work-place.
I would like to see the establishment of a single governing body to oversee work based training and education and to ensure standards and access are maintained throughout Scotland.
Finally, education and training should not end at the point of employment. The right to work based training should be extended beyond 16 and 17 year olds.
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