THE THREATENED CLOSURE of Scott Lithgow has again focused attention devastation of Scotland. general election Thatcher was claiming a Scottish 'economic miracle'.
The Scottish enocomy was supposed to be rebuilt out of the new 'sunrise' industries of electronics and computing. behind the Tory rhetoric. 'At long last Scotland is a economy and is about to lead this country out of the said Secretarv George Younge in last autumn's House of Commons Scotland economy.
Thatcher boasted during last year's general election campaigr that Scotland 'has turned its back on the past' and that with its new industries it is whole the image roasts whole Illas future'. She made with the claim that the 'sunrise' industries Scotland 'are now employing more than shịpbuilding, coal mining and on the industrial Yet as recently as the BRIAN HERON looks at the reality steel put together.' The same claim is being put forward by business leaders and in the press CBI President Sir Cambell Frazer closed the CBI annual conference held in Glasgow last November by holding Scotland Glasgow as 'glowing examples of the way forward for He urged his fellow directors 'Remember, as you return your companies, the sparking example that the people of the city have set The Glasgow Herald, a difficult to work out which are articles and which are advertisements, positively glows nowadays about 'silicon glen'. Maurici Baggot on business page said Scotland is 'one the leading computer of manutatutig celle. the world'.
Has Scotland, the area of the Tories greatest unpopularity at the last election, paradoxically become economic success story?
The reality tells a very different story the myths Thatcher Younger. ine ena ol November MP George Foulkes asked the Secretary State aboul charges in lne elec tronics industry Scotland. The answer revealed a 22 per cent drop in jobs in this 'sunrise' industry between 1970 and 1981.
The 1981 census statistics revealed a total of 74,000 workers employed in Scotland in all aspects of steel. Some 39,000 are shipbuilding and steel. employed in electronics. ine raaluonal shed 9,000 workers. Electronics lost nearly 11,000 considerably smaller total.
The unambiguous reality of these figures dicates that all Scottish in dustry Is decline. the rate of decline of jobs in electronics averaged out cove considerably faster than for traditional industries.
The only of serious expansion of Scotland over the last ten years is the relatively small productior force employed on North Sea Oil the far ciate service guired sector required prime the oil industry Four fifths of all Scottish 'exports' are now ac counted for by North Se oil. There has • been a 4u per cent absolute decline in manufacturing in Scotland over the last twenty years. The latest recession simply accelerated the trend.
The Scottish economy is now completely lopsided in its development virtually totally dependent the single commodity of North Sea oll. Ihis is the only maio industrial sector which to. day has an organic natural base the The sole reason for minimal investment in new industries outside North Sea In massive state funded regional grants. These pay up to 40 per cent of start up COSt industries. On average the covernment odys licula tional companies roughly £11,000 per job created in Scotland The figures on job losses show many companies have taken the money Dasscu Current Tory thinking on ulassive Cuts 1r regional aid will make Scotland a wasteland Scott Lithgow another turn in the vicious spiral of industrial decline in Scotland.