Fergus Ewing MSP
Written 28 posts
Former Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism
Small Business Communication
16th July 2012
As Enterprise Minister, I’m privileged to be able to meet with small businesses across Scotland on a regular basis. The chance to engage directly with business is invaluable in learning more about the contributory factors to the many successes of our SMEs, as well as hearing about the issues that are affecting their companies.
Whisky Galore
6th June 2012
It’s been an extremely positive day for one of our most successful exports – whisky! The news that Diageo is to invest £1 billion over the next five years in the Scotch Whisky industry is very welcome and a strong indication of the company’s belief in the bright future of the sector.
Scotland Week – New York
14th April 2012
I had a very productive meeting today in New York with Renewable Resources Ltd, a Scottish company specialising in solar technology, which has announced that is expanding into US markets. The welcome news comes as part of Scotland Week events and I was only too pleased to hear about the plans from their Chief Exceutive Paul Gribben.
Scotland Week – Calgary
13th April 2012
My Scotland Week engagements have now taken me onto Calgary where I am meeting a range of companies with a focus on energy, especially oil and gas. The connections with the North Sea are strong and we can build on these to bring similarly impressive results for more of our key industry sectors such as tourism and food and drink.
Scotland Week – Houston
11th April 2012
Scotland Week is a huge opportunity to promote our businesses in one of the world’s largest economies and that’s what I’ll be doing over the next week with the Chief Executive of SDI Anne MacColl – showing North America that Scotland is open for business.
Update from Tourism Week
9th March 2012
We’re now half way through Tourism Week, which winds up next Tuesday, and there has already been some very good work done to promote the industry. Most of all, I’ve been impressed by the ambition and drive in the sector and that is is extremely important as we look to build on the success that we have already had in attracting visitors to Scotland.
Edinburgh secures Green Investment Bank
8th March 2012
I’m delighted Edinburgh has been chosen to host the headquarters of the Green Investment Bank. This is the right decision, recognising Scotland’s position at the vanguard of the renewables revolution and follows an excellent and professional bid campaign.
Tourism – the next generation
2nd March 2012
Tourism is very important for the Scottish economy and we need a constant supply of fresh talent to maintain the excellent worldwide reputation that we have in the hospitality sector.
Green Investment Bank debate
22nd February 2012
I was delighted to meet with members of the Edinburgh Green Investment Bank Group today, ahead of opening the debate in Parliament in support of the bid.
The Green Investment Bank is an excellent opportunity for Edinburgh and for Scotland and I firmly believe Edinburgh is the best city in the UK for the Green Investment Bank to be based.
Scotland Visitor Survey
30th January 2012
VisitScotland has just published their Scotland Visitor Survey, which shows 98% of visitors to Scotland are likely to recommend the country to others, and a further 84% planning to make a return trip in the next five years.