More than 68,000 Scottish employers are benefitting from the UK Government’s Employment Allowance in Scotland, figures out today have shown.

The Employment Allowance is a reduction in National Insurance Contributions (NICs) that an employer pays on their employees, and is worth up to £2000 for eligible businesses and charities.

Announced at Budget 2013 and launched in April this year the allowance is simple to claim and easy to administer. Businesses simply confirm their eligibility for the allowance through their regular payroll processes.

Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael said: “We are committed to making the UK the best place in the world to start and grow a business. Being part of the fastest growing economy in the G7, having access to a large domestic market and an extensive global trade network gives Scottish businesses a head start but this is only the start.

“The Employment Allowance gives Scotland’s small businesses – the driving force of our economic recovery – and the innovators, pioneers and major employers of the future greater ability to invest, expand and create new jobs.”

Andy Willox, Federation of Small Businesses’ Scottish policy convenor, said: “The UK Government’s Employment Allowance is helping Scottish small businesses do what they do best: sustaining and creating jobs across the length and breadth of the country.

“This scheme boosts small employers, mitigating some of the growing pains which expanding businesses face. Keeping up the pace of recovery will require even more hard work from growing Scottish small enterprises and this scheme is giving them a real shot in the arm.”

The new data coincides with a recent survey by the Federation of Small Business (FSB) amongst small businesses about the allowance which found that across the UK many small businesses have used it to invest in staff:

• 18% have used it to increase wages

• 17% to hire additional staff, 12% for training

• 8% for more staff hours for current staff

• 18% have used it to invest in their businesses through equipment, machinery, or premises

Walney Extension offshore wind farm in the Irish Sea has been given the go-ahead from the government that will boost economic growth and create new jobs.

If built, the new wind frm could triple the size of Walney Offshore wind farm, already one of the biggest wind farms in the world.

The wind farm is expected to create 230 new jobs over the four year construction period and around 185 jobs annually during the expected 25 year lifespan.

Once built, the wind farm would generate enough electricity to power over half a million homes.

The decision underlines how the government’s policies have made the UK the best place in the world to invest in offshore wind.

The Walney Extension project is one of five offshore wind projects that signed an early Contract for Difference under the new system for low-carbon electricity generation.

As well as being the first contracts awarded under the system, they mark a new stage in the growth of the sector, bringing green jobs and growth across the UK and supporting cleaner and more secure energy.

Some of the UK’s biggest building firms have agreed to join forces with Mayor Boris Johnson to deliver a major programme of investment in London’s infrastructure over the next half century.   

The capital is set to exceed its record level of population within a matter of months and the Mayor is already consulting on a plan that outlines the huge amount of new infrastructure required to allow the capital to cope with a population that is forecast to increase by 37 per cent to more than 11 million people by 2050.

The agenda for the inaugural meeting will focus on identifying potential barriers to the delivery of new infrastructure and how board members might work together to overcome them.

It will be the first time that representatives of all the main infrastructure providers in London have sat down in one room with a brief of supporting a long term plan for investment in the capital.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said:“London is growing at an incredible rate and we need to deliver a huge investment in new homes, schools, water, energy and transport facilities to be able to protect the standard of living that Londoners expect.

“Our infrastructure delivery board is absolutely key to that work and I am delighted at the many talents it contains. Our board members all play vital roles in the everyday life of our city and will all have a part to play in helping London remain the greatest city in the world.”

The London Infrastructure plan being consulted on by the Mayor builds on his campaign for greater fiscal devolution to London and the UK’s other major cities.

Devolving locally-raised taxes to cities would allow investment in much-needed local infrastructure and potentially boost the whole of the UK’s economy.

Tens of thousands of new housebuilding jobs and apprenticeships will be up for grabs for years to come under a deal struck this week between ministers and the industry.

Government-led efforts have got Britain building – in the last year alone planning permission has been granted on 230,000 new homes and private housebuilding starts are at their highest for 7 years.

But leading housebuilders have made clear that a lack of skilled labour is one of the key problems facing their industry, and that they need a range of building skills as well as site managers, surveyors, planners and designers.

Building future skills

The 2008 housing crash devastated the industry, and led to the loss of a quarter of a million construction jobs.

But the housing market has now turned a corner, with government investment returning builders to sites across the country and construction companies now recruiting at their fastest rate since 1997.

Ministers and the housebuilding industry have agreed that the housebuilding industry will recruit tens of thousands of new workers in the coming years.

Housing Minister Brandon Lewis said: “Our efforts have got Britain building over the past 4 years, creating thousands of jobs across the country.

“I want to make sure we maintain this momentum, and ensure British workers – whether those leaving school, leaving our Armed Forces or considering a return to the industry – benefit from the new career opportunities available.

“Today’s deal with the housebuilders will create tens of thousands of jobs and apprenticeships on sites across the country, so we can nurture this home-grown talent for years to come.”

Skills Minister Nick Boles said: “Government has an important role to play in supporting the industry to develop the next generation of housebuilders – from management skills, to traditional trades, to modern building techniques.

“Through top quality employer-designed apprenticeships and industry-led training programmes, we want to help firms across the country to develop and invest in home-grown talent and get the skills they need to succeed.”

Japan’s largest manufacturer of savoury snacks, Calbee, is making its first investment in Europe and opening a new facility on Deeside Enterprise Zone that will create more than 100 jobs.

The news was announced in Japan last week by Economy Minister Edwina Hart and Akira Matsumoto, Chairman and CEO of Calbee, following a meeting to finalise the deal.

The significant investment, which is backed by business finance from the Welsh Government, is a direct result of the Minister meeting Calbee senior executives last year when she led a trade mission to Japan.

Long-term commitment

Economy Minister Edwina Hart said: “I am delighted to announce this important new inward investment for Wales. Calbee is the latest in a long line of highly prestigious Japanese companies that have invested in Wales and I welcome their decision to establish their first European plant in Wales.

“It is also the latest international inward investment project for Deeside Enterprise Zone which proved to be the most attractive location as a number of sites in Europe and the UK were under consideration.

“We have a very successful food manufacturing sector in Wales and this investment will support our strategy to grow and expand the industry, creating more jobs and prosperity and I wish Calbee every success for the future.”

Mr. Akira Matsumoto said:“We are very excited to establish our first European factory  in Wales. This is a significant moment in establishing the Calbee brand in the UK and we are making a long term commitment to grow our business from this important base in Deeside.

“I appreciate both the Welsh Government and everyone’s dedication and support for its  successful establishment.”

The new site will incorporate manufacturing, distribution and some R&D activities with the investment set to create hundreds of jobs over five years. Production is set to commence in the first half of 2015.

Construction group Interserve has announced a major hotel deal with Whitbread PLC for a new Premier Inn hotel in the West End of Edinburgh.

The 150-bedroom hotel will be developed and built by Interserve on a site in Torphichen Street that will create 35 new jobs and boost economig growth in the local area.

This will be the third major city-centre development scheme involving Whitbread’s Premier Inn which Interserve has secured over the last 12 months. Whitbread’s Premier Inn is the UK’s biggest hotel brand.

Welcoming the announcement, Interserve executive director Dougie Sutherland said:“This is another fantastic development scheme in Edinburgh and sits comfortably with the Haymarket site that we are already developing.

“The scheme also reflects the successful partnership that we have built with Premier Inn and we are now developing two sites in Edinburgh and one in Newcastle for them. Interserve is now one of Premier Inn’s largest UK partners.”

The hub by Premier Inn is Whitbread’s innovative compact hotel format which made headlines this month by launching a new app allowing customers to book, check-in and even dim the lights and adjust the temperature of their hotel room.

Kevin Murray, Senior Acquisitions Manager for Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants said: “Our proposed new 150-bedroom hotel in Torphichen Street marks our third hub by Premier Inn deal in the city and sees us move into Edinburgh’s financial district.

“The new hub by Premier Inn represents an £11.4m million investment in the city and the creation of 35 new jobs for the local area, around half of which will be offered to those who have been long-term unemployed.”

Boris Johnson, with developers Mace, has confirmed work is to begin on one of London’s largest long-term rental developments in Elephant and Castle that will build hundreds of homes and create new jobs.

Over the last decade the number of households privately renting has increased to around two million Londoners, but the capital has few purpose built rented schemes in comparison to North America and Europe.

Harnessing the benefits of long term institutional investment, work in Elephant and Castle is set to begin in January with 457 high quality new homes. This includes 278 homes for private rent with a fantastic range of amenities, due to be completed by 2018.

The Mayor has set a number of policies in his housing strategy to encourage institutional investors, such as pension funds and insurance companies, in the long-term rented market, to support longer term leases and more stability for tenants as well as top quality, well designed, new developments.

The Newington Butts site, in London’s zone 1, was among 670 hectares of surplus public land taken on by the Mayor in 2012, more than 85 per cent of which has now been moved into the development pipeline.

The new development will include 179 low cost homes for rent and shared ownership, being delivered by social housing provider Peabody.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “With London’s unprecedented population growth, housing supply and affordability is now our biggest challenge and we need to double the number of homes being built.

“This requires a radical rethink and it is time for new approaches like this, which not only help build more homes in the heart of the city, but also improve choice and quality for Londoners.

“Capitalising on London’s undeveloped public land I want to entice more institutional investors to come forward and invest in quality homes for Londoners, boosting the economy and creating thousands of new jobs.”

Chief Operating Officer of Mace Investment, David Grover, said: “I am delighted to be partnering with Ryan Prince and his team at Realstar, who have a wealth of experience delivering PRS housing that can be applied here and there is a real synergy in our vision for the development.

“Since Mace was selected as the GLA’s partner for Newington Butts, we have been working through the options for this complex project to deliver much needed housing for the capital.

“With our other housing partner, Peabody, we are now able to move forward and deliver an iconic piece of real estate, which will be a strong addition to the London skyline, reinforcing the capital’s position as a major city in the world to live in and work.”

The Mayor and Southwark Council are currently overseeing a £3 billion transformation of the Elephant and Castle area, the southern gateway to central London, which will see around 5,000 new homes delivered, 1650 of them affordable.

The plans, including an overhaul of the transport interchange and the creation of more open spaces, will also create around 5,000 new jobs.

The University of Liverpool has selected BAM Construction as its preferred contractor for the £23 million build contract for the new Materials Innovation Factory (MIF) at the heart of the university campus.

The project includes the demolition of an existing lecture theatre and the construction of the four storey 11,600 sq m BREEAM Excellent rated facility that will incorporate research laboratories, 126 bespoke fume cupboards, office accommodation and associated ancillary spaces.

Work is scheduled to start on site in November 2014 with practical completion of this 90 week build in July 2016.

When completed MIF will be occupied by 240 researchers, including 140 university staff, a team of Unilever scientists from their global Research and Development (R&D) Centre for Home Care and Personal Care products in Port Sunlight, and a broad range of other industrial and academic partners.

Supported by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, as part of the UK Government’s Research Partnership Investment Fund, the MIF is a unique public/private partnership between the University and Unilever.

BAM Construction has previously built the BioSciences building and completed the Engineering Restructuring Project for The University of Liverpool.

Anthony Mulhearn, project manager at The University of Liverpool said: “We are delighted to be moving the MIF project to the next stage with the appointment of BAM Construction to build this world-class facility and one which we are very proud to bring to Liverpool.

“This contemporary building clearly reflects our aspirations and provides the ideal environment to further our relationships with industry partners”.

Ged Flanagan, construction director, BAM Construction said: “This is an exciting project with a high technical specification and we are looking forward to starting on site and working with the project team to deliver this leading research facility for the University of Liverpool.”