Opinion

James Kergon discusses the possibilities for a fulfilling and successful career in Scotland. Some may remember a lager advert from the 1990s which featured a browbeaten young Scottish professional sick of the London rat race. After coming to a profound realisation while packed into an office lift on

While the finalised version of the National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) has environmental considerations at its heart, Alastair Wood asks whether it will have the ability to deliver on the Scottish Government’s 2045 net zero ambitions and whether planning will still be able to support the

Some 20 million casks lie maturing in warehouses across Scotland at any time. Currently security can be taken over these whisky casks either by a floating charge or by a common law pledge. But the Moveable Transactions (Scotland) Bill (MTB) provides a new way of taking effective fixed security over

Michael Reid, managing partner at Meston Reid & Co, discusses the role of liquidators in the fight against fraud. It is often said that challenging economic conditions create financial uncertainty and result in an increase in fraudulent activity by the unscrupulous.

Samuel Mailer discusses the key role Scotland can play in development of the global renewable energy sector and how the north-east can capitalise on a new 'gold rush'. Once again, the eyes of the world are on the latest COP event. The location may have moved from Scotland to Egypt, but many headline

Alex Tait gives his views on the impact the forthcoming Autumn Budget could have on Scotland. As businesses and individuals watch inflation reach double digits and interest rates climb to levels that many have not seen in their working lives before, what do these, along with the Westminster Autumn S

Rob Doepel, EY managing partner, sustainability, UK & Ireland, comments on the publication of the Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT) Disclosure Framework. The TPT Disclosure Framework is comprehensive and an extremely important step in the right direction towards driving the UK towards a net zero f

Andrew Henderson discusses the implications of another Scottish independence referendum for businesses and what considerations should be had. Having secured the SNP’s fourth term in government last year on the commitment to hold a second independence referendum within the first half of this pa

Gemma Diamond, audit director at Audit Scotland, discusses how data is often seen as a burden for public bodies, rather than the key to better policy decisions, and the action needed to build data as a national asset. Scotland is facing enormous challenges. Inequality is on the rise, an ageing popul

Douglas Chapman writes on the impact of late payments on small businesses in an already damaged economic landscape. Poor payment practices can have devastating consequences for small businesses.

Neil Norman writes on the importance of supporting scale-up businesses to generate wider economic growth, how the UK is failing in this, and what deeds to be done to improve the landscape. We know Scotland has an established, well-recognised and thriving start-up ecosystem. We also know that we have

The UK and US have agreed to enhance their cooperation in implementing financial sanctions, in a bid to maximise the impact of the measures imposed on Russia, as well as to ease the compliance burden for business, writes Stacy Keen. The US and UK treasuries already work together to develop common ap

Karen Thomson, payroll director at AAB, discusses how firms can help their employees and the wider business through the current cost of living crisis. With inflation at a 40-year high and the threat of more hikes in interest rates, employees are really feeling the pinch.

Restructuring and insolvency specialists Dunedin Advisory discusses the implication of Bounce Back loan on the UK economy. Covid bounce back loans were introduced by the Government in early 2020 in response to difficulties experienced by small businesses during the Covid 19 Pandemic and subsequent l

Paul Williamson of Selling My Business, a Begbies Traynor affiliate company, runs through all that’s required when preparing a business sale in the run-up to retirement, appointing an advisor, valuing a business and timing the sale of the business. Business owners approaching retirement will n