Latest news with #ScottishEngineering
The Herald Scotland
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Immigration warning over 'less than welcoming' statements
The tone of Sir Keir's remarks on May 12 was, as observed by Mr Sheerin and many others, surely something of a surprise. And it was unexpected even with an awareness - having covered this key issue closely over months and years - of Labour's developing and lamentable stance on immigration. The Prime Minister declared: 'Nations depend on rules – fair rules. Sometimes they're written down, often they're not, but either way, they give shape to our values. They guide us towards our rights, of course, but also our responsibilities, the obligations we owe to one another. Now, in a diverse nation like ours, and I celebrate that, these rules become even more important. Without them, we risk becoming an island of strangers, not a nation that walks forward together.' The 'island of strangers' was a striking turn of phrase. Sir Keir went on: 'So when you have an immigration system that seems almost designed to permit abuse, that encourages some businesses to bring in lower-paid workers rather than invest in our young people, or simply one that is sold by politicians to the British people on an entirely false premise, then you're not championing growth, you're not championing justice, or however else people defend the status quo. You're actually contributing to the forces that are slowly pulling our country apart.' Maybe with the benefit of hindsight the Prime Minister's remarks, even though they could have been uttered just as easily by the Tory Brexiters, should not have been quite so much of a shock as they were. After all, Labour has embraced the key elements of the Conservatives' hard Brexit: loss of free movement of people between the UK and European Economic Area nations and the ending of the frictionless trade from which the country previously benefited enormously when it was part of the single market. Nevertheless, Sir Keir's tone was surely surprisingly dismal, even given all of this. Not only did we have the reference to 'an island of strangers' but also this declaration: 'This strategy will finally take back control of our borders and close the book on a squalid chapter for our politics, our economy, and our country.' What seemed clear from Sir Keir's utterings was that populism most certainly did not end with the exit of Boris Johnson or Rishi Sunak from the prime minister post. Sir Keir's tone contrasted so starkly with Mr Sheerin's reasoned appraisal of the Prime Minister's remarks and Labour's plans on immigration. We had this from Sir Keir: 'We do have to ask why parts of our economy seem almost addicted to importing cheap labour rather than investing in the skills of people who are here and want a good job in their community. Sectors like engineering, where visas have rocketed while apprenticeships have plummeted.' You would imagine Mr Sheerin, as a veteran of the engineering sector, knows a lot more about the specifics than Sir Keir. And it is worth observing the Scottish Engineering chief executive is passionate about people in Scotland and elsewhere in the UK being trained as engineers. He would love to see the skills shortages which are posing such a challenge to member companies of Scottish Engineering and others in the sector solved. Mr Sheerin is not a politician - just someone with deep knowledge of the Scottish engineering sector. So what did the Scottish Engineering chief have to say in his quarterly report published on Friday? Read more He declared that he found the UK Government's 'latest pronouncements on immigration disappointing', highlighting the detrimental impact on companies of 'statements that feel less than welcoming'. Mr Sheerin hammered home his view that raising minimum qualification levels from Higher equivalents to degree level would 'leave out the skilled trades and crafts roles where we are already in shortest supply: welders, fabricators, electricians, pipefitters, CNC (computer numerical control) machinists to name a few'. That is surely a crucial point. And it is worth emphasising Mr Sheerin's observation that people skilled in these roles are 'already in shortest supply'. Mr Sheerin also noted: 'The shortening of the graduate visa scheme reducing the right to work from two years to 18 months after graduating will not only hit our education sector but also reduce the attractiveness of the scheme for companies who will have a shorter timeline to decide whether to invest in the process to extend the visa of the employee.' This is another good point. And the Scottish Engineering chief executive declared: 'Whilst I recognise that this [immigration] is a contentious political issue across the UK for a whole range of reasons, in engineering and manufacturing in Scotland the reality is that immigration is a vital source of skills and experience that cannot be replaced overnight. These skills levels take years to build - and we should be building them - but closing off the supply before putting in place the actions to do that is another example of an action that will challenge the stated ambition of growing our economy.' The time horizon with regard to building skills levels is important. It might not chime with that of politicians such as Sir Keir, who seems at pains to bang the drum on immigration as Nigel Farage's Reform UK makes a big noise on this front. However, it is a simple factual point that engineering skills do take years to build. Mr Sheerin declared that a frustration for him in Labour's immigration pronouncements was that 'whereas there is considerable detail on how we plan to restrict and close this supply of skills, on the laudable stated aim that we will replace the loss with trained or upskilled UK-born workers, the detail is missing on how that will be achieved'. He added: 'And there is no detail that recognises that engineering skills take between four and six years to get to a starting level of competency. It does not seem an unreasonable request for the get-well plan to carry at least the same level of detail as the take-it-away plan.' This seems like an absolutely fair summation of the problems with Labour's populist immigration proposals. If you were asked to choose whether you think it is Sir Keir or Mr Sheerin who is on the money in relation to immigration policy and its effect on engineering and the broader economy, it would surely be the easiest of questions to answer, any day of the week.
The Herald Scotland
6 days ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Scottish Engineering boss Paul Sheerin warns on immigration
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on May 12 that the UK risked becoming an 'island of strangers' as he unveiled what he described as a 'strategy' to 'finally take back control of our borders'. Sir Keir declared then: 'I believe we need to reduce immigration significantly.' Mr Sheerin, who has led industry body Scottish Engineering since 2018, said in his latest quarterly chief executive's review published yesterday of Sir Keir's May 12 statement: 'Much has been said about the tone and language of the announcement, and you will have your own view of that. 'In consideration of the impact on business, companies have reminded me that for skills, like any other commodity in demand, the holder of the asset has choices, and therefore we - Scotland and the wider UK - are in competition with countries around the globe. So, when we make statements that feel less than welcoming, we detrimentally impact the ability for our companies to compete to attract those skills and so support our goal to grow our economy.' Addressing the detail of Labour's immigration proposals, Mr Sheerin declared that raising minimum qualification levels from Higher equivalents to degree level would 'leave out the skilled trades and crafts roles where we are already in shortest supply: welders, fabricators, electricians, pipefitters, CNC (computer numerical control) machinists to name a few'. He added: 'The shortening of the graduate visa scheme reducing the right to work from two years to 18 months after graduating will not only hit our education sector but also reduce the attractiveness of the scheme for companies who will have a shorter timeline to decide whether to invest in the process to extend the visa of the employee.' Mr Sheerin declared: 'Whilst I recognise that this [immigration] is a contentious political issue across the UK for a whole range of reasons, in engineering and manufacturing in Scotland the reality is that immigration is a vital source of skills and experience that cannot be replaced overnight. These skills levels take years to build - and we should be building them - but closing off the supply before putting in place the actions to do that is another example of an action that will challenge the stated ambition of growing our economy.' Read more He declared that a frustration for him in Labour's immigration pronouncements was that 'whereas there is considerable detail on how we plan to restrict and close this supply of skills, on the laudable stated aim that we will replace the loss with trained or upskilled UK-born workers, the detail is missing on how that will be achieved'. Mr Sheerin added: 'And there is no detail that recognises that engineering skills take between four and six years to get to a starting level of competency. It does not seem an unreasonable request for the get-well plan to carry at least the same level of detail as the take-it-away plan.' Sir Keir declared on May 12: 'We do have to ask why parts of our economy seem almost addicted to importing cheap labour rather than investing in the skills of people who are here and want a good job in their community. Sectors like engineering, where visas have rocketed while apprenticeships have plummeted. Is that fair to Britain?' Mr Sheerin said in his latest quarterly review: 'Surely now…we need that oft-quoted 'laser focus' to return to the promise to grow the economy? Without that growth all other political objectives, social and economic, are in jeopardy. 'Against that wish, and from an economic point of view, I found the UK Government's latest pronouncements on immigration disappointing.' The Scottish Engineering chief executive has in recent years on numerous occasions highlighted skills shortages as a crucial issue for the sector. He has previously flagged Brexit as a key factor which has exacerbated this problem. He observed in November 2021: 'Brexit still lingers like a bad smell…In the crucial skills area, one-quarter of members have been impacted by the loss of EU nationals.'
The Herald Scotland
19-05-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Rail Sidings engineers revival of massive wartime factory
The same can be said for rail transport, particularly for freight and rolling stock maintenance, and recently we have had the privilege of working with one such location. It's one that until lately you could say has been a hidden railway gem in the heart of Dumfries and Galloway, only perhaps not so hidden now. Read more: Down a leafy single-track road in Eastriggs in the south of Scotland, is the site of a widespread factory complex known in its day "as the largest factory in the empire", having been built to address a huge demand for munitions in World War I. HM Factory Gretna produced "Devil's Porridge", the name given to a form of explosive known as cordite used as a propellant in munitions, employing 30,000 workers with 12,000 of them being women. This ex-military base massiby bringing jobs to the area and potential career paths into rail for young and not-so-young people. Rail Sidings has leased 18 acres of the circa 1,000-acre site for a 10 year period, with the current area housing double platforms, a loco maintenance shed, numerous buildings in good repair and an internal rail network with valuable direct links to the West Coast Main Line. The Rail Cluster Scotland Project, led by Scottish Engineering and funded by Scottish Enterprise, Transport Scotland and Skills Development Scotland, connected with Rail Sidings managing director Gary Draisey and have been an active part of the Rail Sidings journey since, seeing from the start the significant potential of the team's development plans for Scotland's rail industry. The site has experienced rapid growth and interest over a short eight-month period since, and is now full to capacity, housing large numbers of wagons, passenger trains and snow ploughs, providing secure storage, repair and maintenance services and employing seven local people as a result. Beyond this sprint start, there have been several approaches from local businesses, such as quarries and logistics companies, keen to use the railhead facilities for the movement of their products by rail instead of road. In a world struggling to reach decarbonisation targets, the opportunity that one freight train can remove up to 129 HGVs from our roads, with carbon emissions reduced by 76%, becomes a very attractive switch. Read more: If a wider section of the site were to be made available, Rail Sidings could develop the site further, using the vital nearby A75 links to offer rail freight facilities, taking lorries off the already congested roads and supporting the Scottish and UK Government's net zero targets. With the site in Eastriggs being the only available rail service site between Manchester and Glasgow, the opportunity for increased rail freight with all its benefits could be far-reaching. Linking with local schools and colleges is high on the agenda for Rail Sidings and discussions are ongoing with local secondary schools in Annan and Dumfries about providing work experience for young people to give them an insight into the rail sector and some practical hands-on experience under the watchful eye of rail sector businesses working on site. The benefits of this would be two-fold: encouraging young people to consider rail as a career whilst also helping to fill the well-publicised skills shortage in the rail sector. It can also develop an industry in an area of Scotland that has a real need to expand employment opportunities and economic prosperity for the locality. Subsequent plans around skills could include the development of a training facility at Eastriggs, giving students the opportunity to learn practical skills on the rail infrastructure away from the live rail network in a safe and secure environment. The project has perhaps illustrated one of the key advantages of developing ventures like this in Scotland, in that we are big enough to have scale, and small enough to make the connections between the right organisations and people quickly and willingly. Rail Sidings at Eastriggs has had a bright start. More of the same approach of active collaboration between the key stakeholders could see that being just the beginning of an even brighter future too. Paul Sheerin is the chief executive of Scottish Engineering.
