Reacting to the publication of the Scottish Government’s New Deal
for Business implementation plan, David Lonsdale, Scottish Retail
Consortium Director and a member of the New Deal for Business
Group, said:
“Scottish Ministers have moved swiftly over recent months to
engage and listen to business and the tone and thrust of the New
Deal Implementation Plan is encouraging.
“Our suggestions on regulation - resuscitating the Regulatory
Review Group, properly implementing impact assessments at the
inception of new initiatives, and clarity over the regulatory
pipeline - are front and centre in the implementation plan and
are measures all businesses can get behind. A return to good
regulatory habits is crucial as several potential measures are
either in the pipeline or under consideration, including new
rules on selling foods in-store which are high in salt and sugar,
restrictions on alcohol marketing in stores, and reviewing
whether to apply fair work conditionality to licences to operate
and to eligibility for business rates reliefs.
“Ultimately, the manner with which new regulations are developed
and tax decisions are made, and whether Ministers both listen and
act on the reasonable concerns of industry, will define whether
this marks a step change in relations between business and
government.”
