An independent Scotland could emulate the world’s best-performing small economies and boost economic growth by the equivalent of £4100 per person, a long-awaited SNP report will say.
That claim forms the foundation of the findings of the party’s growth commission, due to be published later on Friday.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has already been presented with the 354-page document, which she says will “restart the debate” on Scottish independence.
The commission, chaired by former SNP MSP Andrew Wilson, was set up two years ago to look at economic policy options for an independent Scotland.
Its report will make 30 recommendations for an independent Scotland that it claims, if implemented now, would see the country match rates of growth seen in some of the world’s most successful small nations.
Wilson said his findings – contained in a report called Scotland: The New Case for Optimism – would offer a “framework” for how Scotland could join other small successful countries in raising standards of living and reducing inequality.
The commission studied 12 small advanced economies around the world, looking at Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Sweden and Switzerland.
It looked in particular on lessons to be learned from Denmark, Finland and New Zealand on how to sustainably boost living standards “over a generation of purposeful, cross-partisan strategic effort and focus”..
The report finds small economies have consistently outperformed larger ones by about 0.7 percentage points a year over the last 25 years and tend to have lower unemployment..
It argues that successful small countries focus on innovation, have a friendly approach to migration, a highly-skilled workforce and in some cases lower income inequality.
The commission also argues taxation should be focused on economic…
