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Plans to establish a ministerial trade board are currently being developed and details will be made available in due course.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport operates on a wholly commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government. As with any commercial airport, contracts and agreements between Prestwick Airport and the aircraft operators are commercially sensitive.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information broken down by day. However, since the Scottish Government took ownership of the airport in November 2013, the yearly figures for scheduled cargo, non-scheduled cargo and any freight diversions are:

November – December 2013: 54

2014: 460

2015: 450

The Scottish Government does not hold this information broken down by day. However, since the Scottish Government took ownership of the airport in November 2013, the yearly figures for the number of scheduled Ryanair flights are:

November – December 2013: 809

2014: 5,815

2015: 3,434

The Ernst & Young (EY) Attractiveness Surveys provide data on the number of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects by sector.

Table 1 provides detail on the top sectors in terms of the number of FDI projects into Scotland for 2012 to 2015. Information is provided for all sectors that had 5 or more projects in the year.

Table 1: Top sectors for FDI projects into Scotland, 2012 to 2015

Source: Ernst & Young Attractiveness Surveys

The Community Ownership Support Service (COSS) is being funded by the Scottish Government to support community-based groups in Scotland considering taking ownership of land or buildings.

This adviser-based service is being delivered Scotland-wide and aims to provide individual community groups and public bodies with a bespoke support service, including:

• Expert advice on all aspects of asset transfer

• Training courses on the asset transfer and asset development process

• Sign-posting to other support agencies

• Web access to information on good practice, toolkits and case studies.

Communities are also able to link into Development Trusts Association Scotland’s wider network to explore the wide range of business models being adopted by other communities throughout Scotland and across the UK.

Other options that community groups might wish to explore include the Scottish Land Fund and BIG Lottery Scotland.

The Scottish Government publishes Scotland’s Spending Plans and Draft Budget which sets out the Scottish Government’s spending plans on their Strategic Priorities for a specific period and most recently in 2016-17 publication (http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0049/00491140.pdf) a strategic vision for Scotland’s public finances over the Spending Review period to 2019-20.

Scottish Development International (SDI) is a tripartite arrangement between Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. SDI provides support for companies to establish and grow their businesses in Scotland and help companies to expand their international trade.

A breakdown of SDI’s budget in each year since 2011-12 is provided in the following table:

SDI Operational Budget

* Figures rounded to nearest hundred thousand

The impact on each Scottish Airport will be determined by how airlines and passengers respond to increased capacity being available. Potentially, airports with no service or limited services to London Heathrow could benefit, with wider benefits for Scotland from improved connectivity for business and new opportunities for inbound tourism.

Expansion at Heathrow Airport offers the potential for the establishment of a new supply chain hub at Glasgow Prestwick Airport to support the building of the third runway. Heathrow Airport will work with the Scottish Government to investigate this opportunity.

The Scottish Government announced its support for a third runway at Heathrow after securing a number of other key commitments for Scotland, including the creation of up to 16,000 new jobs and a minimum of £200 million worth of construction-related spend during planning and construction. There will also be a significant marketing campaign at Heathrow Airport worth £1.5m and beginning in 2017 to promote all that Scotland has to offer. To support existing services and incentivise new ones, from January 2017 there will be a reduction of £10 per passenger on charges paid by airlines operating services from Heathrow to Scotland. There will also be a £10 million route development fund to further help support new domestic routes.

Operational delivery of SDI is provided by Scottish Enterprise, with a contribution from Highlands & Islands Enterprise. Scottish Government staff are also embedded across SDI in a range of functions and provide operational trade and investment support working alongside SE and HIE staff

SDI’s workforce across the globe, including the EU, in each year since 2011-12 is provided in the following table:

* Calculated as full time equivalent posts and rounded up to the nearest full post.

The following table shows the SDI posts in the EU (outwith the UK)