Edinburgh sets out new plan for greener and fairer economy

After months of consultation with the city’s businesses, citizens and partners, the City of Edinburgh Council has set out its plans for a stronger, greener and fairer economy.

The refreshed Edinburgh Economic Strategy sets out the actions the Council will take to support the economy and the priorities that it will collaborate with partners on.

The key aims of the plan are to help businesses recover from the pandemic and create a more resilient economy, ensure that the city’s transition to net zero brings local jobs and opportunities, and give everyone in Edinburgh the opportunity to access fair work and income security.

Key highlights for delivery during the first year of the strategy’s implementation include increasing the number of people helped into work, learning or training through Edinburgh’s Guarantee for All and funded employability programmes, and encouraging 100 businesses a year to become accredited Real Living Wage employers.

The Council also plans to launch new programmes to help businesses thrive in a net-zero economy, including proposals for a new Green Innovation Challenge Fund, and establishing a business-led Just Transition Economic Forum to convene the city’s business community to provide leadership on the just economic transition to a net-zero city.

Council Leader, Adam McVey, said: ‘There has been a lot of work and collaboration over the past months as we have listened to the valuable insights and data from businesses to deliver a robust plan of actions to support businesses, protect and create jobs. Despite the extreme challenges, this plan continues to progress to ensure a just transition to a net-zero economy and a fairer economy at its heart.

‘Through our new business conference programme we’ll be engaging in real and meaningful discussions to help tackle our key challenges as a city while driving practical solutions. We hope that through these regular opportunities to come together we can make sure that we work in partnership with business across our Capital to recover and grow our economy in a sustainable, stronger and fairer way for everyone.’

Council Depute Leader, Cammy Day, added: ‘Our refreshed Edinburgh Economic Strategy falls quickly on the back of our city gaining Living Wage City accreditation and stating our ambition to get over 40,000 people out of in-work poverty. This was one of the key recommendations of the Edinburgh Poverty Commission, which I co-chaired, and through this strategy we hope to build on existing commitments, tackle the fall out of how the pandemic has changed our business landscapes, while setting out actions to support and collaborate with businesses to radically increase the number of workers who can rely on fair work and real living wages.’

Photo by Jörg Angeli