The evolution and roles of the Scottish Development Agency

Real training for unemployed people: A case study of Work-Start in Dundee

“…This has largely been the consequence of generally good relations between Scottish local authorities and the Scottish Development Agency (SDA). This is despite the fact that the SDA is the principal vehicle of central government policy in Scotland and that, since its formation in 1975, it has also downgraded the importance of reducing unemployment (Wannop, 1984;Industry Department for Scotland, 1987).…”

From Sub-state Nationalism to Subnational Competition States: The Development and Institutionalization of Commercial Paradiplomacy in Scotland and Quebec

“…Nationalist elites soon realized the opportunities international involvement would grant Scotland as well as the obstacles its constitutional status constituted on that path. Also in 1975, for instance, under the pressures of the 30%-of-the-popular-vote-strong SNP, the Scottish Office was granted responsibility for another new economic agency, the Scottish Development Agency, whose role was to craft innovative strategies for regional development, notably through the attraction of FDI (Wannop, 1984;Mitchell, 1997: 409).…”

Architectural consulting in the knowledge economy: DEGW and the ORBIT Report

“…Prior to ORBIT, DEGW had already consulted for the Scottish Development Agency (Scotland's equivalent of the Department of Industry), which was leading these developments across Scotland, and worked with similar development corporations in Wales and Warrington to establish 'the emerging needs of the newer sort of business enterprise' alongside possible solutions in the form of 'simple, long-term', flexible office buildings and parks. 37 The UDC model of development encapsulated the fundamental philosophical tension between neo-liberalism and authoritarianism at the heart of Thatcherism: in order to ensure 'freedom' of the market, and ultimately the individual, a powerful state was required to provide the framework for competition. 38 Re-regulation, rather than deregulation, was the core principle.…”