An SNP minister has rejected claims the government is giving up on trying to create tens of thousands of offshore wind jobs.
Jamie Hepburn was pressed on the green agenda after new figures showed a small proportion of the jobs heralded had been delivered.
As Finance Secretary in 2010, John Swinney put his name to a Government document talking up the employment potential of offshore wind:
“This sector alone offers the potential for 28,000 direct jobs and a further 20,000 jobs in related industries and £7.1 billion investment in Scotland by 2020.”
However, estimates from the Office for National Statistics showed there were only around 1700 jobs in 2018.
This had fallen from 2,000 over the previous twelve months.
The gap between the claim and the reality led to criticism by the trade unions Unite and GMB.
At Holyrood today, Labour MSP Neil Bibby quizzed Hepburn:
"Is the Scottish Government's proposed cut to the workforce skills budget a sign that it's giving up on talk of tens of thousands of jobs?"
The minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills replied: "No, it certainly isn't."
He added that Bibby was looking at the issue in "isolation" and said the Government had saved manufacturing yard BiFab.
Pat Rafferty, the top official in Unite Scotland, had previously criticised the Government:
“The latest data by the ONS highlights that direct employment is around 1,700 jobs when a green jobs bonanza of 28,000 was promised 10 years ago by the Scottish Government.
“We now have definite proof that this has been a pipe dream. Billions of pounds worth of renewables contracts are being awarded with minimal benefits to local and regional supply chains which is why urgent action must be taken.”
