Meeting of the Parliament

Meeting date: Thursday, April 27, 2023

Official Report 1029KB pdf

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Space Sector

The next item of business is a debate on motion S6M-08713, in the name of Richard Lochhead, on opportunities for the space sector in Scotland.

15:02  

I am delighted to host today’s debate on Scotland’s space sector, which is a Scottish success story and a sector that, in opening up new frontiers, is delivering benefits for humankind, our planet and our economy. I hope that today’s debate will be the first in a series of debates that shines a light on Scotland’s transformative and growing cutting-edge sectors of the future.

The industrial revolution is the name for a time of great change in industry, technology and science. We are all familiar with the industrial revolution. In the 1780s, which was the lift-off decade for the industrial revolution, Scotland played a leading role and paved the way for what came after and for the modern world.

I believe that this decade is the lift-off decade for the further revolutions that are changing our lives and shaping our futures, whether through rapid advances in technology, the net zero agenda, artificial intelligence or other developments. Once again, ingenuity, innovation and invention, and our talented people, are allowing our relatively small country to play a leading role. The space sector is an industry that exemplifies the pace of change and our country’s leadership.

When people think of space, they might think about NASA and Sputnik, the race to put man on the moon or the enormous rockets and shuttles that took astronauts into orbit, but that is no longer what space is about. Space has become a fundamental aspect of modern-day life. It provides us with services that help us to navigate, to stay connected, to use our credit cards and banking apps anywhere in the world, to monitor climate change and to predict the weather.

Commercial entities are driving growth, the innovation that we need and competition to satisfy an insatiable requirement for data. In 2018, there were an estimated 2,000 active satellites in orbit. Today, that number is about 5,000 and, by 2030, it is forecast to reach 27,000.

The global market for the space sector is projected to grow to £490 billion by 2030, and that is just the start. A wealth of future opportunities—from space-based energy to asteroid mining and in-orbit manufacturing, to name but a few visions for what might happen in space—could result in science fiction becoming scientific fact.

Asteroid mining might sound far fetched, but members might not be aware of asteroid 16 Psyche, a metallic body that exists within the main asteroid belt. One sixteenth of the diameter of the earth’s moon, it contains vast quantities of precious metals whose worth is estimated to be many times that of the global economy.

Although our Scottish space sector has grown rapidly in the past 10 years, it has had a strong academic base, predominantly focused on earth science in Edinburgh, for far longer. That strong base continues to this day. For example, Scottish skills and innovation played an important role in the development of the James Webb telescope. However, it is the miniaturisation and standardisation of spacecraft in the past decade that has allowed Scotland’s space sector to flourish.

Does that also present a challenge? The skills that the minister mentions are very much based on academic research but, as we scale up and grow the space industry, we will also need technical skills. Will a change in our approach to skills development be required to support that sustained growth?

Daniel Johnson outlines an important challenge. As the sector grows, so will the demand for people. In the past few days, the industry made the important point to me that the sector will require a variety of skilled workers, from welders to engineers and scientists. It is important that the skills system adapts to the needs of many of Scotland’s growing sectors. A review is under way and steps are being taken.

There has been enormous change. The main change is in the size of satellites, which have gone from being as big as double-decker buses to being as small as a shoe box. The cost has dropped from tens of millions of pounds to hundreds of thousands of pounds, and the time to design, build and deploy a satellite has reduced from between 10 and 20 years to six months.

As I found out during my visits yesterday, Glasgow is at the heart of that transformation. An industry that had two people in a room now has numerous companies, which employ hundreds of highly skilled satellite engineers and build more small satellites than any other place outside of California. There I was by the Clyde, in a place famous for building the world’s ocean-going vessels, holding in my hand the small space vessels that are being built there in the 21st century to support humankind and protect our planet. Those satellites now track global aviation and shipping, forecast the weather and help to prevent forest fires in the Amazon.

However, satellites are valuable only if they can provide the right data at the right time to support effective decision making. Scotland also has expertise in data gathering and analysis. Scotland is the data capital of Europe, with Edinburgh hosting Europe’s largest infomatics centre and more than 170 data science companies.

We also have a number of excellent downstream data companies that are monitoring the earth’s forests and crops, making peer-to-peer trading much fairer and easier and delivering precise positioning services on a global scale to an accuracy of less than 5cm. That will, in turn, aid autonomous vehicles, precision agriculture and the internet of things.

Those capabilities provide a wealth of opportunities, but what will set Scotland apart will be a full end-to-end value chain—a one-stop shop for small satellites.

The minister is making an interesting speech. It is important to maintain Scottish ownership of that value chain. I was disappointed when AAC Clyde Space, one of the real stars of the Scottish sector, was bought by a Swedish company in 2019. Do we understand the reasons why that happened? It might have been due to a lack of access to capital or to scaling restraints in Scotland. How do we address those challenges in order to maintain control?

That is an important part of the debate. There are two ways to look at that. First, Scotland would not have a burgeoning space industry without inward investment, which comes from a variety of routes, including venture capital and takeovers. Likewise, we want to grow Scottish companies, particularly those that spin out of our fantastic universities. We hope that those will grow to become substantial Scottish companies. We have to get that balance right, so the member is right to highlight the issue.

The end-to-end capability that I referred to will be so important in providing Scotland with advantages. It will support our ambition to become a leading European space nation, capture a £4 billion share of the global market and support up to 20,000 jobs over the next 10 years.

Launch is the final gap in the process, which will soon be closed. Our vertical spaceports in the Shetland Islands and in Sutherland are due to commence operations shortly. Those will be followed by suborbital activity in the Western Isles and horizontal launches from Prestwick, supported through the islands and Ayrshire growth deals, which made significant investments in those areas.

Our spaceports are attracting international customers from Europe and the US, but we also have domestic companies that are developing their own launch vehicles. Skyrora plans to launch its XL vehicle from SaxaVord, which will also play host to the UK Pathfinder Launch programme from Lockheed Martin.? Orbex, from my Moray constituency, will launch its Prime vehicle from Sutherland, having completed its latest funding round for £40.4 million, led by £17.8 million of investment from the Scottish National Investment Bank. It is now ramping up recruitment towards its first launch, with about 100 people now employed across its three buildings. I attended the Orbex vehicle unveiling last year. It was an absolutely awesome spectacle, and I look forward to visiting the team again in the coming days.

However, it is not just the economic prize that makes space such a key opportunity sector; its role in the global fight against climate change is equally as important as its economic contribution. Data and imagery from satellites are critical to monitoring changes in our planet. That is another area in which Scotland is genuinely world leading. The industry is sensitive to the global conversation about climate change and its own role within it—both as a force for good via climate monitoring and in mitigating its own environmental impact through manufacturing processes, launch and end of life.?

?Sustainability is at the heart of the Scottish space sector, and it forms a key part of the Scottish Government’s strategy. Last year, we launched the world’s first sustainable space road map to encourage responsible growth and set us on the path to becoming the greenest space sector in the world. The world has taken notice, and it wants to learn from Scotland about embedding sustainability in the industry.

The whole Scottish space community is already taking action to reduce its carbon footprint and support the transition to net zero. Our launch manufacturers are using lightweight materials, innovative designs, and fuels to develop green launch vehicles. We launched an innovation challenge fund to help Scottish businesses to develop innovative space-based solutions that can support the net zero transition.

We can also develop solutions to the problems of other nations, and we have already built strong international interest, including by organising a dedicated mission to Switzerland to promote the Scottish sector. Space is, by its nature, a global sector, which means that it presents significant opportunities but also strong competition. International positioning and marketing will be essential to maintaining existing progress and supporting further growth.

Mangata Networks and Spire before it chose Scotland as a base for their satellite manufacturing and operations. That is clear evidence that our approach is working. Our ability to understand, support and effectively engage in the international arena is further boosted by the formation of the Scotland International Space Advisory Committee. The committee, which is a voluntary group, is co-chaired by GlobalScot’s Joanna Peters and Dr David Alexander, and it brings a wealth of expertise and connections across the globe that we can use to tell the world about our sector.

As we have heard, like many other sectors across the economy, our space sector is facing skills challenges. However, it is important to recognise the value of the jobs that we have. Space is high value, with gross value added per employee estimated at £144,000, which is 2.5 times the United Kingdom’s average labour productivity. It has the power to inspire and excite like few other sectors, and it is an attractive destination for international workers with the right skill sets. We must utilise that to build a strong pipeline of talent and form an inclusive sector that is accessible for everyone. The sector takes such issues very seriously.

Scotland has a thriving space ecosystem that already employs more than 8,500 people. The recent publication on the UK space industry reaffirms that Scotland is “punching above its weight” on performance, with almost one fifth of all UK space sector jobs being based here. It also recognises strong growth in our company base and annual income. The sector has seen impressive growth of 12 per cent year on year, and we expect that to continue.

All that has been achieved, and all that we hope to achieve in the future, is possible only through strong partnership between industry, academia and the Government. That is why we have Space Scotland and the Scottish space academic forum. An important part of our strategy involves industry, academia and the Government working in partnership to achieve our collective ambition for Scotland to become a leading European space nation through the provision of the full end-to-end value chain for small satellites.

As I draw my speech to a close—I see that I am slightly over my time due to the interventions that I took—I highlight that the combination of the full end-to-end provision for small satellites, with sustainability at its core, and the strong partnership between industry, academia and the Government will put the Scottish space sector in a genuinely world-leading position.

As I said, Scotland was famously at the heart of the first industrial revolution, and now, in this pivotal decade, we are again shaping the future. The future for space, as one of Scotland’s transformative and cutting-edge sectors, is really exciting. We have left the launch pad, and we are heading for the stars and new frontiers. I commend the sector for all that it is achieving, and I commend the motion to Parliament.

I move,

That the Parliament welcomes the continued growth of the Scottish space sector; recognises that the sector accounts for 18% of all jobs in the UK space industry; notes that the sector has been identified as a key economic opportunity through the National Strategy for Economic Transformation and that, in October 2021, industry, academia and government set out their collective ambition for Scotland to become a leading European space nation through the Scottish Space Strategy; welcomes the major investment by Mangata Networks in building its new hub in Scotland, which will support up to 575 highly-skilled jobs; recognises the strengths of the space sector in Scotland and the role of space data in tackling climate change; acknowledges the importance of strict environmental and safety regulations to this industry, given its wider impact, and understands the significant opportunities for Scotland in becoming the home of space launches in Europe through the development of spaceports for civilian, science and technology programmes.

Before I call the next speaker, I advise members that we have some time in hand.

15:16  

I welcome the debate, and I am delighted to open it for the Scottish Conservatives. I am speaking with a number of different hats on today. I am my party’s lead on business, and I note that there are real economic benefits for Scotland and for the space industry supply chain. I speak as a Highlands and Islands MSP, representing a region that is already a key player in Scotland’s space sector but which has so many new opportunities to explore. I am also deputy co-convener of the Scottish Parliament’s recently established cross-party group on space, which we hope could play an important role in promoting awareness of the sector, the opportunities that it offers, the challenges that it faces and what we, as parliamentarians, can do to help it to grow.

Space has captured the imagination of humanity from the very earliest days. From the sci-fi of the late 19th century and the start of the space race between the US and the USSR, through the shuttle launches of the 1980s, humanity has for generations now sought

“To boldly go where no man”

—or woman—

“has gone before.”

Whereas the first journeys were by NASA and the Soviet Union’s space programme, countries across the world are now involved, and the private sector is playing an increasing part as well. While space remains a place to explore—there is quite a fair bit left to explore—it is also now a vital part of our planet’s infrastructure, with satellites orbiting the earth, providing broadband and other telecommunications links and playing a huge part in our daily lives.

With the global space economy projected to reach £490 billion by 2030, there is a new space race, and the United Kingdom and Scotland are very much part of that. The UK space sector is a growing industry that offers exciting opportunities for the future. It is already worth billions of pounds every year to the UK economy and is estimated to employ nearly 50,000 people. It supports at least 126,000 jobs in the UK across a wider supply chain and, in 2021 alone, its contribution to the UK economy grew by an extra £1 billion. It created 1,800 new jobs and saw almost 300 new space organisations start up. Income is growing at a faster rate in the UK in comparison with the global space industry.

As the minister outlined, there is much happening in Scotland, too. Income from Scotland’s space sector rose to £180 million in 2021. The number of space organisations increased to 183—the fourth largest boost across the whole UK—and there were 8,500 people working in the sector.

As the Scottish Government motion mentioned, and as the minister highlighted, there has recently been investment from Mangata Networks in a hub at Prestwick airport, in Ayrshire. I am sure that my colleague Sharon Dowey will say more on that later.

Scotland is home to several spaceports, including in Shetland and Sutherland, in my Highlands and Islands region. Companies that are part of the space sector or are working with it as part of the growing supply chain are based across the country. AAC Clyde Space in Glasgow has already delivered 13 satellites for launch, with a further 21 in various states of production, and Glasgow alone produces more of those small satellites than does anywhere else in Europe.

The Scottish National Investment Bank has invested £17.8 million in the orbital launch services company Orbex, which is based in Forres—again, in my region. Orbex is developing the first orbital rocket powered by a renewable biofuel.

This week, my colleagues Douglas Ross and Graham Simpson visited Skyrora in Cumbernauld to see for themselves the work that it is doing and to hear its plans for this exciting sector. Skyrora is just one of the organisations that are working with the SaxaVord UK spaceport on Unst, which, again, was recently visited by Douglas Ross, but is also a site that I visited a number of years ago. Although I admit that, at that time—surrounded as we were by grazing sheep and not much else—it was hard to imagine the site as a major launch facility, I know how much progress has been made, particularly at the Lamba Ness peninsula.

SaxaVord expects to create around 140 jobs and put nearly £5 million every year into the local economy on Unst alone, with further jobs and investment in other parts of Shetland. I look forward to visiting the site again soon and seeing for myself the work that is being done and, hopefully, one of the 30 vertical launches that it is looking to support every year from the site.

The member makes a point about polar orbital launch being a huge opportunity for Scotland, yet industry has raised concerns about the Civil Aviation Authority regulation regime being onerous and way too expensive and uncompetitive. Will the member take steps to address that with his UK Government colleagues?

The key thing is that we should all be working together—the Scottish Government, the UK Government and members of my party. Where there are challenges—there will be challenges—we must work to address them, because this is such an important sector. I think that we will find today that we all agree on that. If there are areas in which we can play our part, it is important that we do so.

If members will excuse the pun, I say that it is not rocket science to see that this is an increasingly important sector, one that Scotland and the UK are at the forefront of, and which already provides high paid, high skilled jobs. However, in another sense, it is about rocket science, because skills are a vital part of ensuring that the sector has the highly qualified people that it needs. More than a quarter of the sector’s employees hold at least a primary degree, which is higher than in any other sector in the Office for National Statistics census.

It is therefore vital that the Scottish Government ensures that the educational pathways are there for the sector, that the necessary subjects are available in schools, that apprenticeships and university degrees are in place, and that they are accessible to Scottish students. That is important, because one of the issues that has been raised with me by some employers is that places at Scottish universities for degrees in areas where we have serious skills gaps are dominated by foreign or non-UK students. We are using our world-leading universities to train up the workforce of our economic rivals, causing recruitment issues here, in Scotland. The Scottish Government needs to look at that and think about how we ensure that our education system—our schools, colleges and universities—are fit for purpose to provide our businesses with the skills pipeline that they need.

I know that one of the things that most impressed Douglas Ross on his visit to Skyrora was its engagement with local schools and its determination to ensure that young people learn of the opportunities of this exciting new sector. That is key, and we know that Scotland needs to do more to provide the opportunities for young people to take science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—STEM—subjects, and to provide the encouragement for them to take them up. It should not be hard to get young people excited about the possibilities of the space sector and get them interested in the opportunities that it offers and how they can be part of it.

However, it is not just about skills. The Scottish Government must ensure that the infrastructure is in place to support the growth of our space sector. That means delivering fast and reliable broadband to local communities, particularly the more remote island communities such as Unst, which are often left behind. It means ensuring that local road connections and—of course—local ferry links are fit for purpose. Further, it means ensuring that there is housing available to meet any increasing demands, which is an issue in communities across Scotland.

The Scottish Government launched its Scottish space strategy in October 2021, aimed at securing a share of the global space market for the Scottish economy. Although the Scottish National Party might be going through its own rapid unscheduled disassembly at the moment, I share the ambitions of the Scottish Government that Scotland should take advantage of the opportunities that this new sector offers and ensure that we are at the forefront of it.

I welcome the UK Government’s commitment to support the space sector right across the UK, including the £373,000 that it has provided for Space Scotland to strengthen the Scottish space ecosystem.

The Scottish Conservatives want to see Scotland’s two Governments working together to support the Scottish space sector and ensure that it has the investment and the business environment that it needs to grow. We recognise the huge potential that the sector represents for Scotland, and its potential to be an industry that is successful across our whole country.

We will support the motion and both amendments today.

I move amendment S6M-08713.2, to insert at end:

“, and welcomes the UK Government’s commitment to support the space sector in the UK, including the recent £6.5 million of funding from the UK Space Agency, which benefitted UK-wide projects such as providing £373,000 for Space Scotland to strengthen the Scottish space ecosystem.”

15:24  

I share the sentiment that we heard from the minister. When we talk about the space industry, for many people, that will conjure up images of science fiction and things in the far future, and not necessarily things that are relevant to them. However, the reality is that space is already a significant part of Scotland’s economy, and it will, if we make the right decisions, be a significant part of its future economy.

When I was looking at the Scottish direct investment web page, I was struck by a web clip that outlined Scotland’s strengths and advantages. That was not only compelling to watch; it had been filmed in my constituency, at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh, which is the base for the UK Astronomy Technology Centre and the Higgs Centre for Innovation. It is one of the key components of the expertise that Richard Lochhead set out.

Although Richard Lochhead was absolutely correct to say that Glasgow is very much the centre for the manufacturing of vehicles, Edinburgh is very much the centre for data analytics, which is the other part of the crucial mix that we have in Scotland. When we add in assets such as the future spaceports in the north and south of Scotland and things such as the satellite receiving station in Errol, just outside Dundee, we quickly realise that space is all around us. Scotland has deep opportunities. We have the expertise, driven by our world-class universities and research and the existing companies.

A number of insights from the debate apply not just to the space sector but more broadly, to new technologies and advanced manufacturing. We need to start thinking about Scotland not as having separate clusters but as one cluster. We are a small country, and that gives us significant advantages. All the assets in the north and the south of the country, in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee, are very close in global terms. That gives us a huge strategic advantage to grow the sector.

We must all sit up and recognise that the 8,000 jobs growing to potentially 20,000 jobs in 10 years’ time, with potentially five times 8,000 jobs thereafter, is a significant opportunity for Scotland but also a critical one. As much as we look forward, we must look at our current industrial mix. The oil and gas sector employs more than 200,000 people, and the median wage is £45,000 a year. Those jobs will not continue for ever. It is imperative that we look to future industry so that we can replace those highly paid and high-value jobs.

We very much agree with the sentiments that are expressed in the Government’s motion, but we cannot rest on our laurels. Active intervention and significant planning and policy will be required to seize the advantage in investment, infrastructure, location and people in order to make good on that. That is why we put forward the suggestions in our amendment, and it is why I will move it.

Skills gaps are apparent right across the economy in Scotland. Despite the increasing discussion about that, the reality is that we have seen a decline in the number of employees receiving job-related training over the past 15 years. Indeed, in the most recent budget, we saw a £10 million decrease in Skills Development Scotland’s budget compared with the previous year. Audit Scotland has said that the Scottish Government has failed to provide the necessary leadership or oversight in skills planning. Therefore, there is a lot riding on the skills review. I know that that is forthcoming. It is clear that, if we are going to make good and build those 20,000 jobs, we need an agile and responsive approach to skills. I acknowledge that that is set out in the national strategy for economic transformation, but, in order to deliver that, detail is required.

I would go further. We need approaches that enable partnership between industry and Government for insight, setting the content and delivery of skills training, and leveraging private finance to deliver funding. That is what genuine partnership looks like, and that is what a future skills approach for space and, indeed, other areas will require, and that must come forward.

We also need flexibility. The reality is that a skills regime and approach that is overly focused on those at the start of their careers will not get this right. We need to reskill people and repurpose skills from industries of the past so that they are relevant to the industries of the future. We have plenty of engineers, but we need more of them; we also need to redeploy engineering so that the skills that engineers have are relevant to the skills that they need.

We also need to look at our places. Much is made of words such as “infrastructure” but I think that we need to break down that language. Much of what high-tech sectors need is actually quite simple—they need space, not in terms of the space up there but in terms of space in industrial units and sheds. The real appetite in industry for the green ports is not so much about deregulation; it is simply about getting the space in which they can set up and run businesses. We need to learn that lesson, because it is what is needed for the space industry as well as for other high-tech industries such as life sciences.

In terms of places, it is also about housing—Jamie Halcro Johnston was absolutely right about that. Unless businesses can be set up and run in places that are accessible to people who are able and willing to work in those businesses, we will not be able to make a start. There is plenty more to say, but, ultimately, we need an industrial strategy to make good on our potential in relation to the space industry.

I move amendment S6M-08713.1, to insert at end:

“; further understands that ensuring that employers in the space sector have access to the skills and expertise they need in the workforce is essential to long-term success in the sector, and recognises that this will require improving delivery of STEM subjects in schools and revitalising skills delivery so that it is flexible, aligned to industry, and capable of reskilling and upskilling; emphasises the requirement for physical space for advanced manufacturing to be set up affordably and in proximity to supply chains to deliver effective clustering effects for the space sector; acknowledges the importance of cooperation and pooling, such as at the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland, to enable the development of advanced manufacturing in the space industry, and highlights the importance of a supportive regulatory regime and of the Scottish Government engaging collaboratively to ensure that this is delivered.”

15:31  

I welcome this debate on space sector opportunities and the potential for Scotland. Scotland has the UK’s fastest-growing space sector and there are ambitions to grow a £4 billion space industry by 2030. We are on our way—in 2020-21, the sector had an income of £180 million, which is an increase of 30 per cent since 2018-19. As the motion highlights, we punch above our weight, with 18 per cent of all UK space-related roles in Scotland, which is double our share of the UK’s population.

More satellites are built in Glasgow than are built anywhere else in Europe, and, with the increased emphasis on data in our lives, as the minister has highlighted, the opportunities are evident. Small and medium-sized enterprises, which are vital to the wider business economy, are making their mark in Scotland’s space industry. On Tuesday, I saw this for myself in my constituency in relation to the impact on the supply chain of the development of the SaxaVord spaceport, home to the UK pathfinder programme, which is backed by Lockheed Martin.

Unst, with a population of around 650, is the most northerly inhabited community in Scotland—indeed, in the UK. It is the final frontier. The SaxaVord spaceport, which is sited at the northern tip of Unst, has been an important national infrastructure link for decades. RAF Saxa Vord, which was a vital radar base operated by the Royal Air Force in the second world war, became a listening ear during the cold war. The Ministry of Defence continues its presence there today.

In 2017, entrepreneur Frank Strang and his business partner Scott Hammond gave a presentation to Shetland Islands Council. Their vision of a spaceport in Unst seemed light years away to those of us sitting in the council chamber that day. However, just as Shetland did 50 years before with the oil industry, we welcomed this new opportunity for Shetland plc.

SaxaVord spaceport leads the way. It will provide vertical launch and ground station facilities for a range of US, European and British launch providers and satellites. Construction work began just over a year ago and one launch pad has already been completed. The company now employs around 60 people, with more to come, and contributes millions of pounds to the economy.

On Tuesday, I was one of the guests at a joint event that was hosted by SaxaVord spaceport and German company HyImpulse Technologies to see engine testing for a small orbital launcher. HyImpulse has been working in Shetland on the development of the system and testing programme, and this joint working should see its first suborbital launch from SaxaVord spaceport later this year. That will be a significant landmark moment for HyImpulse, for SaxaVord spaceport, for Shetland and for Scotland. Unst will be the headline, not the footnote, in Scotland’s space sector.

Shetland’s local supply chain is also benefiting. With massive experience in supporting the oil and gas sector, local firms are now turning their skills to supporting the space industry. Those firms include fabricating and engineering companies such as Ocean Kinetics, which built the main support frame for HyImpulse to test its rocket engine, and Lerwick Engineering and Fabrication, which is building the launch rail for the suborbital launch at SaxaVord spaceport.

Shetland’s geography is challenging. Interisland transport could be improved with short tunnels, but, when it comes to space, Shetland is an asset as its location at the crossroads of the North Sea and the Atlantic makes it an ideal spot to launch small satellites into orbit. That northerly point is looking to the stars for the next chapter in space technology and development, alongside community and educational collaboration, with SaxaVord having already attracted a quarter of a million children to its online STEM lessons.

I will now turn to the opportunities that might lie in defence. In a recent session of the Scottish Affairs Committee at Westminster, my colleague Christine Jardine MP asked about the potential for defence in the high north and north Atlantic that the space sector could provide. In response, there was a discussion about tracking ships and the protection of at-sea infrastructure. At the end of last year, Shetland experienced a serious telecoms outage as a result of a damaged undersea cable. Media reports have also highlighted concerns about Russian vessels performing cold war action off Shetland.

There is great opportunity for Scotland to be at the forefront of modern technology development for use at home and across our vast sea territories. We can also help allies by being poised with such technologies and open to future developments. As we embrace a new challenge and take up those opportunities, Scotland must embrace its share of responsibility, too, and help to clean up space with the same zeal that we have for the transition to more sustainable living here on earth.

We can, and should, be ambitious about the contribution that Scotland can bring to the space sector. We should allow the growing and exciting sector to help us to reassess the current status quo, and we should be forever forward thinking in what we can do and about the responsibilities that we have to future generations and the environments that we reach. Scotland’s space future is bright and buoyant. May we go boldly.

15:36  

First, I congratulate Richard Lochhead for securing the debate. He obviously has a better relationship when it comes to Parliamentary business, because that is something that I failed to do in more than five years of working with the sector.

Secondly, I recognise the fact that the concept of the Scottish space sector has gained cross-party participation and support. It is great to see that Lorna Slater has supported the motion, because I know that the Greens have had some issues with the sector in the past. However, I do not think that there are any Green Party members in the chamber for the debate, which is disappointing. Adam Tomkins famously put out a tweet a few years ago that ridiculed the concept of Scotland’s space sector as pie in the sky. It is great to see the Conservatives on board, too.

It has been recognised that there is work to be done to raise public recognition of what the Scottish space sector is all about and how people can be involved in its success, as, over time, it will no doubt become one of Scotland’s mainstay sectors. Indeed, work to analyse the relative sizes of different sectors and what they contribute to the economy was done as part of the national strategy for economic transformation. Over the coming years, the space sector has the scope to replace some of the activity from sectors that perhaps will not be with us for ever.

As has been highlighted, Scotland has significant advantages. Our geography allows us to do sun-synchronous and polar orbits, which is a huge advantage. The end-to-end capability that we have from satellite manufacture, rocket manufacture, launch capability, data analytics and ground stations is unique in Europe and probably globally. We are focused on building on that capability.

It was a real pleasure to work with the sector over that period; it is hugely dynamic. I pay tribute to Craig Clark and Dr Hina Khan at Space Scotland; to Malcolm Macdonald and the team at the Scottish space academics forum; and to the work of the Scotland international space advisory committee. Under that tremendous initiative, a group of global Scots self-organised into a sector-based group and came forward with excellent proposals, which gave Scotland’s space sector true global reach into some significant parts of the global sector. I am sure that the minister will look to roll out that model across other sectors with regard to the global Scots network.

I was delighted to engage with Mangata three times during the journey when Scottish Enterprise and others were involved in landing its investment in Scotland. I am delighted that that came to fruition. Not only will it take manufacturing to the next level, which will allow Mangata to build satellites of up to 1,000kg, but the work that it is doing on the 5G network locally and beyond will be a real asset to Scotland’s broader connectivity ambitions.

I look forward to publication of the innovation strategy. Our space sector has a strong position as one of our key horizontal enabler sectors and that will further cement the sector’s place.

Paul Sweeney made an important point about regulations. Responsibility for the legislation lies with the UK Government, as the policy is reserved. It is important to make progress on the role of the Civil Aviation Authority, which I have met a number of times to discuss the matter. The pressure on it needs to be kept up; the sector wants us to do that to ensure that the CAA delivers on its end of the bargain.

Points about sustainability have been well made. Scotland’s focus is on space for good and on sustainability. As the minister said, Scotland is the first country in the world to have a space sustainability road map, which is a lesson to the sector in other parts of the globe, where people are watching with interest what we are doing in moving into new space. We are moving away from the traditional focus on defence and large satellites to something that will have a huge impact on our ability to tackle the challenges of climate change and net zero as we move through this decade and into the next.

Over the past few days, I have spoken to people in the sector to gauge how the minister and the Government could work increasingly closely with them to take forward opportunities together to develop the sector. The concept of a national space mission has been raised with me previously, and it was good to see more feedback on what shape that might take. I will highlight four areas where the sector has identified that more work needs to be done, as we build the sector, as it moves into the next phase of its maturity and as we secure Scotland’s place in the £490 billion market.

The first area is skills. All the speakers so far have discussed the importance of attracting skills into the sector and of using the sector’s attractiveness to drive the broader STEM agenda in schools across Scotland. It is great that work is happening in some schools locally—I commend that—but a programme to work with education colleagues in the Government and make that a more significant part of our STEM education efforts would be welcome.

Another part of the skills agenda that we should not forget is talent attraction, particularly from the rest of the UK. With the industry advisory group for rest-of-the-UK talent attraction, I was taking forward hugely important work, which space and aerospace were a key part of. It was great to hear the Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture say yesterday that that work will continue. I encourage the minister to make himself aware of that work, if he is not leading on it, and to ensure that it continues to attract talent from the rest of the UK to the Scottish space sector and other sectors.

The second area is international aspects and, to be frank, what I call space diplomacy—Scotland leveraging its excellent position in the sector to best effect in raising Scotland’s profile globally. I engaged in that with a number of countries, including Luxembourg, Ireland and Switzerland. Malaysia is probably the standout example. In Singapore in February, I met the Malaysian space delegation, which was extremely keen to engage with Scotland on a number of levels and had a detailed plan to do that. I encourage the minister to take that work forward with a visit from the Malaysian space delegation to Scotland as quickly as is feasible.

The third area is infrastructure. The sector has asked for engine and platform test capability, integration capability and facilities that can be shared across businesses in the sector, including growth space, which Daniel Johnson highlighted, to allow the sector to build on the progress that it has made, to expand further and to encourage growth businesses.

The sector’s fourth point, which is a bit more ambitious but which the Government should look at, is about co-designing and launching satellites on the Government’s behalf, not only to stimulate the sector and businesses, particularly on the downstream data side, but to highlight and make a statement about Scotland’s seriousness in developing the sector. Data that came from a satellite or constellation would benefit Scotland’s people and Scotland as a whole, particularly on our net zero agenda. There are many examples of where space data—on heat in buildings or other aspects of the net zero agenda—could be extremely valuable.

The sector has given a number of pointers that I hope that the minister will consider. As always, I remain available to support the growth of Scotland’s space sector in whatever way I can.

I call Sandesh Gulhane, who joins us remotely.

15:44  

Thirty-four years ago, Neil Armstrong uttered the immortal words:

“one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind”.

Since the last manned lunar mission in 1972, human space exploration has focused largely on low earth orbit missions, communications and observation satellites, and unmanned scientific exploration. Now, with space attracting high levels of private funding, coupled with advances in technology and growing public sector interest, more and more countries are looking to the stars. Over the next 17 years, the annual revenue that is generated by the global space industry is expected to hit £1 trillion. The challenge for Scotland is to ensure that it competes and collaborates in the global space economy—to infinity and beyond.

How are we doing today? Glasgow alone produces more small satellites than anywhere else in Europe. A key player is AAC Clyde Space, a UK-Swedish venture that produces satellites for weather forecasting, precision farming and environmental monitoring, which we have heard about before.

Outwith Glasgow, the UK Space Agency is supporting the development of vertical and horizontal launch spaceports across Scotland, including in Shetland, Sutherland, Argyll, Prestwick and the Outer Hebrides. On the Lamba Ness peninsula, preparation work is under way on the first integration hangar, where rockets will be assembled and satellite payloads will be integrated. Shetland’s SaxaVord spaceport is part of the UK-wide effort to gain a £4 billion share of the global space market over the next seven years. The site was completed in 2022 and will support up to 30 vertical launches a year from a former Royal Air Force site. With regard to jobs, up to 200 people are engaged in each launch. Scotland’s space sector generated an income of £180 million in 2021. Scotland now has more than 180 space organisations, while our total space industry workforce numbers 8,500.

Our fantastic universities also play a vital role in developing Scotland’s space industry. At the University of Edinburgh, backed by £30 million of UK Government funding, the £45 million Bayes centre is home to world-class data science and artificial intelligence, which is required to support growth on the data side of the space industry. The University of Glasgow’s space Glasgow research cluster focuses on cutting-edge research into space flight and exploration and has partnerships with industry and organisations such as the European Space Agency. The University of Strathclyde’s space cluster works with industry partners to support space research on the likes of satellites, handling space debris, robotics and data analytics.

The UK Space Agency is launching a £20 million fund to support international partnerships that will harness the UK’s national strengths, support new space capabilities and catalyse investment. Up to £2 million will initially be available to help to strengthen the space sector’s partnerships with other space nations. Funding is available to industry, academia and research organisations to work with international partners on projects that could help, for example, to bring new services to market or support cutting-edge research.

Scotland truly has the potential to benefit from the global growth in the space sector, but that will require a sharp focus on investment in our universities’ funding for research and development. In turn, that will attract a highly skilled workforce to live and work in Scotland. The UK space sector is a growing and exciting industry that the UK Government is fully committed to supporting and investing in, including in Scotland, where opportunities abound. Unleashing the possibilities of Scotland’s space sector can occur only if Scotland remains within the UK, where our resources can be pooled, knowledge can be shared and the UK Government can provide significant investment into a range of exciting projects.

15:49  

I, too, welcome the opportunity to participate in the debate this afternoon, and I am very happy to support the motion. I thank the University of Edinburgh for its briefing and I extend my thanks to Angela Mathis, chief executive officer of ThinkTank Maths, for the time that she has spent engaging with me and for her commitment to Scotland’s place in the space sector. I also commend Space Scotland and the many other organisations and talented individuals working in Scotland’s space sector.

As I prepared for today, I reflected on a presentation that I attended at which Professor Maggie Aderin-Pocock, who is a well-known space scientist in the UK, described how her career in space was inspired by “The Clangers”. “The Clangers” was a children’s television show in the 1970s, which I remember, although many members here today will not, about a family of creatures living in peace and harmony on a planet. I will return to the importance of encouraging talent into our space sector later.

It is remarkable to think that this is the first space debate that has been held in the Scottish Parliament since the session began, and I am sure that that is courtesy of our colleague Ivan McKee, who has been quietly laying the foundations for us to reach this point. However, space is fundamental to our modern-day existence and to the future of our planet. As Professor Brian Cox said,

“The best way to protect the Earth is to look down from space.”

As the motion outlines, the Scottish space sector is an exciting area of growth, accounting for about 18 per cent of all jobs in the UK space sector, which is significant, given that Scotland is home to around 10 per cent of the UK population. We are punching above our weight. We have well over 100 companies, from start-ups to SMEs and larger companies, which are involved not only in manufacturing but in space applications that benefit other sectors and areas of the economy. Of course, that work is underpinned by the Scottish space strategy, which sets out our collective ambition for Scotland to become a world-leading European space nation. The strategy aligns to the UK space strategy, but it also outlines areas where Scotland has an advantage. For example, for the development of spaceports and vertical launch projects, which we have already heard about, our geography and location place at us some advantage.

An important aspect of our growing space sector, as we have already heard, is sustainability and the space sustainability road map. It sets out three areas: making manufacturing and launch as sustainable as possible; tackling space debris; and using space data to benefit planet earth.

The north-east currently hosts around 11 companies that support the sector. One company in my constituency provides high-accuracy global navigation satellite system services. I note that the just transition of Scotland’s energy sector review highlights potential employment opportunities for certain oil and gas roles, which is welcome. However, the relationship between the energy and space sectors is not new. Today, space has a key role in monitoring gas emissions and its climate impact, with around half of all essential climate variables that help us to understand and predict the evolution of climate being measured by satellite.

Although the space sector continues to underpin the collection of data about planet earth, space itself remains a domain in which we do not yet know everything. We do not understand all the dynamics, and we do not fully know how things move; therefore, we have to move with cautious steps while holding on to our dream.

We look into space and see something clean and untouched. However, the orbital paths around our planet already contain a lot of debris and junk, and when satellites come to the end of their lives, they can break up into small pieces and collide with other satellites. As such, in growing our space sector, we also have a duty to keep space clean, safe and accessible to future generations. Therefore, I ask the Scottish Government to outline what it intends to do to ensure that Scotland plays its part in keeping space clean.

As we have heard, underpinning our space sector is talent. I note that the Labour amendment sets out the need to ensure that employers

“have access to the skills and expertise”

required to ensure the longevity of the space sector in Scotland, with a focus on the delivery of STEM subjects in school. I am particularly in interested in that area, and I agree that it is critical that STEM learning, and mathematics in particular, is supported at the earliest point in our tertiary education system.

I commend the work of Scottish Development International and others to grow our space talent. I welcome workers from Europe and beyond to create a workforce that is rich in skills, experience and, importantly, languages. However, my research for the debate revealed concern among some working in the sector that the UK is not seen as a welcoming place and that it can be challenging to recruit into Scotland. We run the risk of companies being unable to secure contracts and, ultimately, moving to Europe. Therefore, I ask the minister to do all that he can to ensure that those who contemplate coming to Scotland to work in our space sector know that Scotland is a welcoming place to live and work.

I welcome today’s debate highlighting this growing and exciting sector, and I look forward to playing my part in helping it reach its full potential.

15:56  

Like many others we have heard from today, I am very enthusiastic about the possibilities that will become available to us with increased investment in the space industry. I join colleagues in encouraging even further investment across Scotland to push our economy forward and bring much-needed jobs to our country. They would be the kind of technical, varied, skilled and well-paid jobs that we need to see more of. It is heartening to come here to discuss job creation instead of yet more people suffering the threat of job loss or precarious and unreliable work.

To be ready for this growing industry, however, we have to increase the number of young people studying STEM subjects, as Audrey Nicoll said in the previous speech. Having STEM subjects at school is really important, as is the ability to carry them forward all the way to relevant degrees and qualifications. That is about how we structure education and the link to understanding all the learning styles and learning options that are, or should be, available to young people and other people throughout their lives.

I have met fantastic apprentices at flourishing businesses such as Spirit AeroSystems in Prestwick, which is training young people in intricate and technical jobs that can sustain them for life. It is an example of supported learning taking place in a work environment, and it came across as an excellent way for the apprentices to learn.

There has to be co-operation among schools, universities, businesses and Government, as we have heard, to achieve this over the long term, for generations to come. I am glad that the minister seems to have the mindset to ensure that that is what we will seek to happen.

I would like to see a much higher proportion of young women studying STEM subjects, which we know continue to be dominated by men. When I spoke to the young apprentices, they spoke about how hard it was to make the decision to go into this field. The issue is not just how to develop relevant skills among young women but how to retain women in these professions as they advance through their careers. We definitely need to work on that. Too many young women do not see engineering and this kind of development work as an environment that they can continue in throughout their lives. It feels a bit closed to them, and that definitely needs to change.

The proposed Mangata Networks development will be of great benefit for Prestwick and the surrounding area in my region of South Scotland, as other members have spoken about. Fears about the long-term sustainability of Prestwick airport have been growing for some time, and the proposed development provides great news for an area with a long and proud history in the aviation and aeronautics industry. It is a wonderful development for the community as a whole, which is full of people who have worked in this kind of industry. I am sure that the spaceport and the industries that pop up around it will be firmly welcomed by everybody in South Scotland.

Increased investment like that will also be a fantastic benefit to our world-leading university sector, which is training the scientists, data analysts and engineers of the future right on the doorstep of the proposed plans for the space industry and at pioneering institutions across Scotland, as we have heard from other members about their regions. This is an opportunity for us to be on the cutting edge and it is very exciting.

Foremost, however, I see this as a brilliant opportunity to bring well-paid, highly skilled jobs with proper trade union representation to the area, and a wonderful chance for future generations to get in on the ground floor in the exciting development of the spaceport and all its surrounding industries. I must stress the importance of those being good trade union jobs—that is so important.

Union representation leads to the long-term sustainability of industry across Scotland; it does not detract from it. Workers who feel represented stay in their jobs and drive innovation. Workers who feel short changed and undervalued go elsewhere, so it is important that we make sure that these jobs come from an industry that welcomes that role of the trade union movement. I will be making that point very clearly to the businesses and investors in the space industry in my region and ensuring that the Government sticks to its promises in that regard—about work and the importance of representation.

I join with my Scottish Labour colleagues and all members across the chamber in celebrating the investment opportunities in the space sector and encouraging others to look at Scotland and, in particular, my region of South Scotland. It is a place where the space sector can make advancements, flourish and be an excellent place for people to work and for communities to be involved in the process.

16:02  

Well, I had to say it: I am boldly going where Christine has not gone before. What do I know about space and satellites beyond “Star Trek”? Actually, I may surprise you and even myself.

It all started when Derek Harris got in touch with me, as he lived in Penicuik, in my constituency. He introduced me to Skyrora, which has been mentioned before, and Black Arrow. Black Arrow was the UK’s only rocket to successfully launch a satellite into orbit, but it had lain at its crash-landing site in the South Australian outback for 48 years prior to Skyrora stepping in to preserve it and return it to Scotland. I sponsored its coming to Parliament—outside, of course. It represents an important piece of heritage in the space sector, which continues to thrive today in Scotland, and serves as inspiration to the next generation of space scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs.

Since being established in 2017, Skyrora has invested approximately £50 million in developing technology and infrastructure and in creating a skilled workforce, which is now 70 people based in a manufacturing and assembly facility in Cumbernauld. Outside investment over that time includes a grant from the UK Space Agency for £2.5 million, which is currently being extended in delivery time period and in scope; a recently confirmed horizon 2020 grant of €500,000 over four years for advanced manufacturing 3D printing; and a national manufacturing programme supporting the licensing of Skyrora’s 3D printer, which I have seen.

According to Skyrora, there has been no further funding from any institutions including Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish National Investment Bank, despite extensive engagement. I leave that for the minister to consider.

I am advised by the company that the key challenges are as follows. Not unexpectedly, one is funding. Another is a UK regulatory regime that is not competitive, even unfit for purpose. That issue has been referred to by other contributors and I will return to it. Also, there is a lack of a clear co-ordinated approach by all levels of Government, starting from understanding why launch is required, and of a road map or plan with clearly articulated steps to make launch happen.

There was strong initial engagement across the space industry, academia and Government. However, more recently, that co-ordination and collective drive has somewhat fallen back to individual companies’ “private aspirations”, as opposed to continuing to garner support and push collaboration.

I go back to licensing. In spring 2022, Skyrora submitted its application to the UK Civil Aviation Authority for its launch licence, after extensive engagement that included a 23-month process from February 2019 to help establish the safety case process approach to evaluation. It is now April 2023, and Skyrora is still waiting for qualitative feedback from the CAA on its submission and, indeed, for any indication of when it might receive a launch licence.

In the meantime, to pursue its requirement for undertaking launch, Skyrora has assisted the Icelandic authorities to establish a permit process over the course of 2021-22 and, in October 2022, Skyrora launched the suborbital test vehicle Skylark-L in Iceland.

In the context of Scotland, Skyrora sought to suggest that the Scottish Environment Protection Agency might be able to take a lead on managing and enabling the regulatory process of procuring a licence, in a similar way that SEPA took the lead on decommissioning oil and gas infrastructure.

For the future, Skyrora’s ambition is to realise income to the Scottish economy of more than £2.1 billion by 2030: 428 full-time equivalent manufacturing jobs, with salaries that it hopes will be 26 per cent above Scottish average, which deals with the issues that Carol Mochan has raised; a research and development investment of more than £5 million every year—five times the Scottish average; and, by 2030, more than 300 internships, 30 apprenticeships and sponsored skills programmes in welding, 3D printing, advanced manufacturing and so on, taking use of Scotland’s national engine test centre in Gorebridge in my constituency.

I turn now to Thistle Rocketry, which is located in Tweedbank in my constituency. That early-stage business received a Scottish EDGE award of £100,000 to support it. It is a space launch start-up, which is currently developing scalable rocket systems for cube satellites. Its award is made up of a £30,000 grant and a £70,000 soft loan.

At the moment, Thistle Rocketry is at the climax of a six-month project. On only a £50,000 budget, it has designed and built an 8-kilonewton suborbital rocket engine—please do not intervene for a technical explanation—with the goal of advancing its proprietary propellant pump, and it is lighting the engine for the first test fire tomorrow, weather permitting. Testing will continue for another few days, with both the engine development and the advancement of its intellectual property representing major milestones for the company. With the completion of that test project, it will formally commence its seed raise, which is planned for this year.

It is the tale of two space satellite companies that I know quite well, one far more advanced than the other, which will both, I hope—and I will end where I started—be businesses that live long and prosper.

I call Colin Beattie, who will be the final speaker in the open debate for a generous six minutes. We will then come to closing speeches, for which all members who have participated will need to be in the chamber.

16:08  

I welcome the opportunity to speak on opportunities for the space sector in Scotland. It still surprises me how many people are unaware of the opportunities that the space sector has here. Even our own Scottish space strategy states that

“The space sector has been one of Scotland’s best-kept secrets”.

As some members might be aware, I recently launched—pardon the pun—a cross-party group on space to give MSPs and people who operate in the industry in Scotland a chance to come together to raise awareness of the importance of the space sector to the Scottish and wider UK economies; to promote the sector’s growing benefits that arise from Scottish investment in the space sector, including its pivotal role as a force for good in the global challenge to address climate change; and to encourage and strengthen Scotland’s position in the wider space industry.

I mention that in order to establish that CPG I appeared in front of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee to justify its formation. The convener of the committee referred to my “childlike enthusiasm” regarding the space sector. He was absolutely correct. Of course it is exciting, although it is still in its early days. I will seek to nurture and continue my enthusiasm. I am pleased that the CPG has continued to gain interest among my colleagues from across the chamber, combined with support that it has received from organisations in Scotland. If any member in the chamber has room for another CPG in their schedule, let it be that one.

The space sector is expanding faster here, in Scotland, than it is anywhere else in the UK. It is, reportedly, due to grow in value to £4 billion by 2030, which equates to about 20,000 jobs in the sector by that year. Scotland has planted its flag on the space industry map. As we heard, Scotland now builds more small satellites than anywhere outside California.

We have all the right components for the sector to flourish while enhancing Scotland’s economic development and contributing to meeting our net zero ambitions. It is therefore only right that the space sector has been identified as a key economic opportunity in the national strategy for economic transformation. We should take full advantage of the opportunities that the sector has to offer Scotland.

I can confidently say that the demand for the sector exists, and I am sure that my colleagues across the chamber will agree. Scotland is currently home to more than 130 companies that operate in the space sector, together with over 170 data science companies. We have heard about SaxaVord spaceport in Shetland, Space Hub Sutherland and the major investment by Mangata Networks, which is building its new hub in Scotland—a hub that will support up to 575 highly-skilled jobs.

However, I give a special mention to one of the companies that is operating in my constituency, because I want to highlight its work in the sector. Once again, I mention Skyrora, which has gained recognition locally and nationally for space sustainability and innovation. Sustainability is a key aspect of the space sector, and it is commendable that Skyrora is driving the way forward with its flagship orbital rocket Skylark L. It is designed to use a fuel mix that produces 45 per cent less CO₂ emissions than most launches. The Scottish space sector shares in the collective responsibility to tackle the current climate emergency, and Skyrora, as it has demonstrated, is already innovating through use of greener fuels, lightweight materials, smart design and reusability.

It comes as no surprise that Scotland is leading the way in such an innovative sector. Our history lends itself to great scientists and inventors, and it is vital that we continue encouraging such innovation, especially among our young people. Currently, Scotland is home to 18 per cent of all UK space sector jobs, which represents just over 8,400 jobs. However, if we are to reach 20,000 jobs by 2030, we need to engage with young people on the roles and we need to find ways to upskill our existing workforce. Scotland is lacking deep tech, but the continuing success of the sector will depend on its workforce.

The University of Strathclyde in Glasgow runs the week-long Scottish space school, which is open to secondary 5 pupils in Scottish schools. It allows them to learn from some of the world’s leading figures in space travel, including NASA astronauts and engineers. The programme has been a huge success in previous years, with many pupils going on to study engineering at Strathclyde university. I would like to see the sector and our universities doing more outreach work in our primary and secondary schools. Education has the power to inspire the next generation of space industry workers.

Today’s debate focuses on the opportunities for the space sector in Scotland, but we must not dismiss the challenges that come alongside them. Like many other sectors, the space sector knows that it is no easy feat to find the right people with the right skills, and hiring conditions are becoming tougher. Scotland’s doors have always been open to the world, and they remain so, but the UK Government consistently tries to close those doors, which has depleted our recruitment pool.

ADS—the industry trade association for the sector—has called for the creation of a transferable skills catalogue to enable a larger overseas worker recruitment pool and to allow businesses to upskill and address workforce shortages far more quickly. Greater flexibility would allow workers who have a good foundation of transferable skills to apply for roles that are listed on the shortage occupation list. That list is updated only every 12 months; perhaps updating it more frequently—for example, every six months—would help to address labour market shortages more effectively. Labour markets and industries are continually changing and, with our drive to meet our net zero ambitions, different skills are demanded. It is only fair that we keep in step with those changes.

Of course, here, in Scotland, we have no remit to make the changes that are required, so I ask that the Scottish Government and the industry continue to put pressure on the UK Government to make the changes that are required in order to make the sector a huge success. It is imperative that a solution be found in order to minimise the risk of hampering Scotland’s scientific and economic progress.

The space sector is one in which we are thriving. I mentioned the fact that the sector has been one of Scotland’s best-kept secrets. Let us now celebrate the industry and the long-term prosperity that it offers to Scotland, our people and beyond.

We move to closing speeches.

16:15  

I am very pleased to have the opportunity to engage in the debate and to close on behalf of Labour in what has been a vital discussion about one of Scotland’s most successful and vibrant sectors.

Like Christine Grahame, I had the pleasure of visiting Skyrora in Edinburgh and Loanhead in 2019, during my time as an MP and shadow under-secretary of state for Scotland, and I am thrilled that the company is still thriving—it now has more than 60 headquarters staff and more than 100 research and development staff, who are based in Cumbernauld.

It is exciting to see the scale and potential of the space sector in Scotland, from Skyrora—which I already mentioned—to Alba Orbital in my Glasgow region, to SaxaVord spaceport on Unst in Shetland, to name but three of many players in the sector. The industry is innovating nationwide.

I commend the minister for using Government time to hold the debate, and my fellow members from across the chamber for their engaging contributions. I trust that we will all, in our own way, continue to carry forward our passion and hard work on behalf of the space sector. It is clear that we are all anxious to ensure that we do not deny or miss opportunities for it to be successful. We must work intensively, rigorously and urgently to ensure that we achieve our potential in the best way that we can in what is a competitive global sector.

My colleague Daniel Johnson has hit the nail on the head with the Labour amendment. It is key for the space sector and beyond that the Scottish Government grasps the bull by the horns and engages much more intensively, rigorously and formally with industry to ensure that the sustainability of advanced manufacturing jobs in Scotland is secured. As has been mentioned extensively, the two most critical aspects in ensuring that jobs and work programmes can be supported in Scotland are skills—especially of people who are at the start or in the middle of their careers—and infrastructure.

Those of us who regularly meet the industry—including Colin Beattie, who set up the cross-party group on space—recognise that the industry is desperate to make a long-lasting impact in Scotland. We know that there is enormous interest in creating jobs and establishing long-term work programmes here, but people in the industry tell us that they need workers and the necessary training so that our schools, colleges and universities can provide excellent outputs and an appropriately qualified labour force. That is critical. They also say that the Scottish Government must help them in securing the facilities in which they can do their work well.

I see parallels with the advanced manufacturing sector, which needs the right facilities to do what it does best. That is particularly the case in the shipbuilding and maritime sector, which, at meetings of the cross-party group on maritime and shipbuilding, tells MSPs time and again that if Scotland would invest in shipyard infrastructure to build ships, companies would bend over backwards to make vessels in this country. There is a similar issue in the space sector. I hope that the minister hears me when I say that industry leaders have been loud and clear in making the point to members in cross-party groups that if we build it, they will come. They need the Government to respond in a mission-focused way. That will involve the Government taking on risk, where necessary, to ensure that companies can crowd in wealth and take root here in Scotland.

I am pleased that the minister has high ambition for the sector. The Government has set out the

“aim to grow the workforce in the space sector by 26% year on year”

and the stronger

“commitment to grow the sector by 2030”.

I will be looking carefully to see whether the Government’s cuts in education budgets and the proposed cut of £10 million in Skills Development Scotland’s budget will hamper those efforts. I fear that they will do exactly that.

Only this week, I was contacted by constituents of mine, who stated their concern about the fact that their children cannot take advanced higher maths, chemistry and physics in Glasgow schools because Glasgow City Council has cut the advanced higher hub at Glasgow Caledonian University and their schools do not provide those courses. That means that children at state secondary schools in Glasgow cannot access undergraduate engineering courses at the universities of Strathclyde or Glasgow. I think that that is a shameful situation and one that needs to be urgently addressed.

More can be done to protect the Scottish Government’s ambitions and the development of the space industry here and in the rest of the UK.

Despite the challenges, we can, with assets such as the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland, be a powerhouse for innovation and advancement. That is why Labour is passionately advocating for the Scottish Government to celebrate organisations whole-heartedly and to work closely with industry and the UK Government to ensure the best possible environment for the industry to thrive in.

The member for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale mentioned additive manufacturing. I recall that, during my visit, Skyrora said that that was exactly the sort of thing that could be done at the National Manufacturing Institute, so that all companies in the sector could buy time for that particularly specialised form of advanced manufacturing. Many small and medium-sized enterprises would be unable to finance that on their own, but they could do it collaboratively.

I beg the minister to do all that is in his power to prevent the branch-plant effect that was discussed in his opening speech, and to ensure that our innovative space sector is maintained by wealth that is controlled in Scotland, and not sapped by global corporations.

I worked with Clyde Space during my previous career at Scottish Enterprise and was saddened in 2019 when the Swedish company ÅAC Microtec bought it over. Both companies—Clyde Space and ÅAC Microtec—were founded in 2005. Why was it that the Swedish company acquired the Scottish company and not vice versa? Although they are doing great work, we need to understand why that happened. Scottish companies should be acquiring overseas businesses, not the other way around, and we should see more of that happening. Scottish headquartered companies will be key to our future, so we cannot allow them to go into overseas control.

I could refer to numerous members’ comments about that, and about the regulatory issue that was also brought up. We must ensure that the Civil Aviation Authority adopts reforms so that the sector can achieve first-to-market launch into polar orbits, because if we are not careful Iceland and northern European countries will steal a march on us. That is absolutely critical.

I was particularly taken by the comments from the member for Glasgow Provan about the need for a national space mission. That is critical. It will require the state to take risks, although many previous Scottish Administrations have taken a risk-averse approach. We look need to look at the idea of talent acquisition and skills, as was mentioned by the member for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine. We should look at international engagement and driving export markets, and at critical infrastructure and shared facilities such as the NMIS in Inchinnan.

My colleague Ms Mochan mentioned the huge potential of Prestwick airport because of the opportunity for clustering with Spirit Aerosystems. We should also look at opportunities to contributions to our achievement of net zero—for example, using the heat from data centres to drive district heat networks. There are huge adjacencies and many opportunities for clustering. We should work rigorously across the sector to seize all those opportunities.

I thank the minister again for the opportunity to debate a sector that is vital for Scotland. I hope that members from across the chamber will support the amendment that was lodged by my Labour colleague, the member for Edinburgh Southern.

16:22  

As has been mentioned in contributions from other members, Scotland’s space sector continues to grow and contributes significantly to our economy. The space industry is a rapidly growing field, and Scotland has the potential to be at the forefront of that exciting sector. The war in Ukraine is affecting satellite launch capability around the world and there is a renewed need to develop that technology here, at home, and to fully harness that expanding market.

Scotland is home to more than 140 space organisations, including significant players such as Spire Global, AAC Clyde Space and the universities of Strathclyde, Edinburgh and Glasgow. The industry generates around £5.6 billion in turnover and provides 22,000 jobs and 910 apprenticeships across the country, adding £2.3 billion to the Scottish economy.

That is why the recent partnership between Spirit Aerosystems and Astraius to improve future satellite launch capability at Prestwick spaceport is fantastic news not only for Ayrshire but for Scotland and the United Kingdom. That collaboration is part of the UK’s plan to secure a larger share of the global space economy, which is expected to be worth £490 billion by 2030, as Richard Lochhead said earlier.

The Prestwick spaceport aims to become Europe’s premier location for launching small satellites into orbit via air launch, and the collaboration between Spirit and Astraius will speed up the development of system components and key processes for the Astraius horizontal launch platform. It has the potential to drive growth in the science and engineering supply chains, create new jobs and career paths and inspire the next generation of space professionals across the UK.

The recent announcement by Mangata Networks, which plans to establish a new space engineering, manufacturing and operations hub in Prestwick as part of the Ayrshire growth deal, demonstrates Scotland’s welcoming environment for investors. It will create up to 575 new jobs over the coming years, making the Prestwick airport hub a significant economic driver for Ayrshire. We must make sure that Scotland has an attractive economy so that we can best capitalise on this booming industry.

Scotland’s geographic location and robust aerospace manufacturing sector make it an ideal location for polar rocket and satellite launches. However, the availability of talent is crucial to Scotland’s space industry’s success, as several members mentioned in their contributions. The same engineering pool is stretched across a variety of engineering sectors, including aerospace and military, meaning that employers are in stiff competition with each other. As one industry expert told me,

“The success of Scotland’s space sector is predicated on one thing—people. Whether Research & Development, supply chain opportunities, whatever, it is all built upon our supply of skills. As the space sector has fantastic growth, so too do other engineering sectors such as aerospace, defence, advanced manufacturing and so on, they all draw from the same engineering talent pool, and that pool is already running close to dry.”

As the demand for skilled workers continues to rise, it will be increasingly important for Governments, the industry and educational institutions to collaborate on adapting and improving training programmes. Such co-ordinated thinking will enable us to identify the skills and knowledge that are most in demand and ensure that training programmes are designed to meet those needs.

The member makes an important point about the need for greater collaboration to drive critical mass into the sector and all parts of engineering in Scotland. Does she agree that the current landscape is way too cluttered and that there is way too much confusion about what is out there? We need to rationalise that and have a focused approach through a body such as Scottish Enterprise to make everything join up a bit better.

I can give you the time back, Ms Dowey.

I absolutely agree with everything that Paul Sweeney has just said. We need to have a less cluttered environment. It needs to be a lot clearer so that businesses know where to go for help so that they can get employees with the skill sets that they need. They also need to be able to highlight that to the Government and educational institutions so that we know which courses we need. Having visited Ayrshire College, I know that a lot of work is already under way between it and the local industry to provide pathway courses for young people to give them the skills that will enable them to enter the sector.

As we attract more investment and highly skilled workers, we will also need to have the support of both our Governments to ensure that adequate funding is delivered so that the building blocks that we put in place now are fit for purpose in the future.

We cannot underestimate the cost of acquiring land and erecting buildings for that work to take place—and the work does not stop there. If we are to entice the brightest and the best, they will need homes to live in and roads to drive on, which means that we must invest in local infrastructure.

Scotland has many opportunities in the space industry, but we need to lay the groundwork today to ensure success tomorrow and in the future.

I call Richard Lochhead to wind up the debate. You have around nine minutes, minister.

16:28  

I am grateful to members for their really good contributions to the debate. It has been great to see unity and the Parliament getting behind a growing key Scottish sector. I am sure that that will be welcomed by all the companies and people who work in the space industry in Scotland. The sector has certainly captured the imagination and attention of colleagues from across all the parties.

Over the next few minutes I will touch upon a few of the contributions, or at least the themes raised by members.

I was particularly interest in Sandesh Gulhane’s contribution, which appeared to come to us from the space station. He had dialled in remotely, and his backdrop made it look as though he was genuinely somewhere in space. I agreed with most of his speech, and I thought that he made some good points until he got to the end, when he seemed to say that our space industry was somehow a reason for our remaining in the union. It was then that I realised that he was definitely on a different planet to the rest of us. [Laughter.]

There were many other good and helpful contributions to the debate, and some important themes were raised.

As someone who has been in Parliament since 1999—there are a few other colleagues in the chamber who have been here since then—I know that, if someone had said to us back then that we would be debating Scotland’s growing space industry in the Scottish Parliament, I am not quite sure that we would have believed them. As the MSP for Moray since 2006, I think that if someone had said to me that there was going to be a rocket company based in Forres, I would have thought that they had been having too many local drams, because I would not quite have believed that that could happen either.

Nevertheless, the fact that we are debating the space industry in Parliament, and that these companies are setting up the length and breadth of Scotland, shows how quickly the sector is advancing and the agenda is changing, and how well placed Scotland is to develop a vibrant space sector that makes a huge contribution to the economy.

The Government will accept both amendments. With regard to Jamie Halcro Johnston’s amendment, we very much welcome the UK Government’s research funding and other funding towards the space sector in Scotland, as it is very important. Research funding is reserved to the UK Government and it is important that we have our fair share. The regulation of space and the issues around that are, likewise, reserved to the UK Government.

I say to all members, therefore, that I will do my utmost to have a constructive relationship with both the regulators. In due course, I will meet with Sir Stephen Hillier, the chair of the Civil Aviation Authority—I know that he has been in touch, seeking a meeting with me to discuss regulation with regard to all those issues—as well as with my counterparts in the UK Government in order to ensure that, working together, we can continue to promote Scotland’s space sector.

With regard to the Labour Party’s amendment, we agree with a number of the issues that it highlights, including the importance of science, technology, mathematics and engineering subjects. Attracting people with the right skills, and supporting the development of those skills in the Scottish economy into the sector, is also important. Building effective clusters across the country, which is already happening, and the role of the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland in advanced manufacturing and working in tandem with the space sector, are important themes too. We will therefore support the amendments today.

I asked my officials to put together a little map of space activity across Scotland, and they helpfully provided one for me. It reinforces the issues that many members raised when they spoke about companies in the space sector in their constituencies in different parts of Scotland. I cannot go through all the parts of Scotland that have space activity, but the map highlights Shetland, the Western Isles, Glasgow, Renfrewshire, Ayrshire, Argyll and Bute, West Lothian, Moray, Tayside, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, the area south of Edinburgh and so on. Beatrice Wishart, Christine Grahame, Colin Beattie and others also mentioned companies in their constituencies. The space industry in Scotland is now very much a national industry.

Alongside other innovative and high-growth sectors such as quantum technologies, photonics, robotics and autonomous systems, Scotland’s space sector is one of the world’s best-kept secrets. I hope, therefore, that we can all, together, endeavour to ensure that it no longer remains that way and that we bring the space industry and those other key sectors out of the shadows. Colin Beattie and other members made that point.

What is currently going on in the Scottish economy is absolutely staggering. In the chamber, we have a tendency to dwell on the negative and the downsides, and on the challenges, which we understandably have to discuss. However, there are an enormous number of success stories in the Scottish economy. I have mentioned quantum technologies, photonics and robotics, and of course space, but those are just a few examples of high-value sectors that are growing and creating jobs, and giving Scotland opportunities for international leadership. We should be proud of that—we should celebrate it more often in the chamber and let the people of Scotland know about it.

My colleague Ivan McKee made an excellent contribution. I thank him—and John Swinney, who is also in the chamber—for playing a significant role in getting the space sector in Scotland to where it is today. Ivan McKee, in particular, oversaw the strategy and the sustainable road map. He mentioned earlier some of the trade missions that he has been on to secure vital inward investment and build relationships. He deserves huge credit for that, and I know from speaking to people in the space sector that they always mention how much support they got from him. All that I can do is stand here and say that I am going to do my best to follow in his footsteps and ensure that we deliver on-going support of that nature to the sector.

However, he did get me slightly concerned when he said that I, as the trade minister now, should support a national space mission. I thought that he meant that I was to lead a mission to outer space—however, I realised when I listened to him that he was speaking about a different definition of “mission”. I agree with some of the points that he made in his speech about supporting our international reputation building, and some other issues that he mentioned, and I certainly want to ensure that we take those forward.

One issue that he did talk about was about encouraging the Scottish Government and public sector organisations in Scotland to become anchor customers of the space sector. That is an important point, and the space companies that I spoke to also raised it with me. They would like to see the Scottish Government and public sector in Scotland working in close partnership to give them business and recruit the space sector, the satellite companies and the data science companies to help to solve some of Scotland’s problem. That is an important theme that we should pursue.

I am pleased that that has begun. Space Intelligence, one of the companies that is in partnership with Scotland’s nature agency, NatureScot, has already produced a groundbreaking new mapping system for Scotland. It is the country’s first ever nationwide, high-resolution habitat map and it gives an insight into how Scotland’s natural capital is changing over time. That will have value for landowners, land managers, farmers, environmentalists and so on.

We have begun that work, but there is a long way to go to make sure that we can make the most of the excellence that is on our own doorstep.

Audrey Nicoll and other members talked about the importance of having a clean sector. People have an image of sending thousands of satellites into space, possibly creating debris and other environmental issues. That is why we should be proud of the fact that Scotland is again leading the world in space sustainability. When I spoke to the space companies, I learned about all the techniques that they are adopting to ensure that leadership. The rocket company Orbex, which is in my constituency, uses a clean fuel to put the rockets up. It took me by surprise that the company has developed that technology, but it just shows the advances that we are making in science and technology in Scotland, and the leadership that the space sector is showing in saying to the rest of the world that this can be done in a sustainable way. It is also great to see that other countries are now learning from Scotland.

I see that I am running out of time, so I will just pick up on skills. Carol Mochan, Daniel Johnson and other members talked about the need to ensure that we have the skills. We do face some challenges in that area, and this is also an issue in the sectors. In a way, they are good challenges to have, because Scotland is so popular for inward investment. We have companies that are about to employ hundreds more people in this country, so we must ensure that those people are available. It is a great sign that companies from around the world want to invest in Scotland. We are seeing that with Mangata Networks at Prestwick, which is about to create 500 new jobs. In the Highlands and Islands, 740 jobs are about to be created, reminding us that the industry is national and not just for the central belt. It is great news that all those jobs are going to be created, but we have to work with the skills system, which is being reviewed, and with our universities and colleges to make sure that the skills are available in the times ahead.

Scotland already has an amazing reputation for so many industries, including whisky, renewable energy, oil and gas—I could go on and on. When we come back to the chamber to debate the space sector in a year or two—or five, or whenever—I hope that the space sector will get the same recognition that the globally renowned industries that I have just mentioned already have all around the world.

Space has a key role to play in supporting Scotland’s economy, in tackling climate change domestically and globally, and in making many other contributions to humankind and the future of our planet. We are already punching way above our weight globally. Given the rapid growth of the global space industry, now is the time for us to step up and seize the opportunity to make Scotland Europe’s space nation.

I commend the motion to Parliament.

That concludes the debate on opportunities for the space sector in Scotland.