Scottish Liberal Democrats leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has pledged to put defence at the heart of his party's industrial and skills strategy, aiming to bolster national security and create skilled jobs across Scotland.
Speaking ahead of a visit to Babcock's site in Rosyth on Thursday, Mr Cole-Hamilton outlined plans to develop a new strategy that identifies gaps in the country's skills base and builds a tailored training and education system around them. This comes amid reports that Babcock has hired 300 Filipino welders due to a shortage of skilled workers in Scotland.
Defence bonds and spending boost
Mr Cole-Hamilton has called on the UK Government to launch a new programme of defence bonds to fund a £20 billion increase in military spending, helping to raise defence expenditure to 3% of GDP by 2030 at the latest. He also expressed ambitions to transform Scotland into Europe's leading destination for commercial space launches, providing the UK with independent access to space for deploying military satellites.
Cole-Hamilton's statement
“We need to ramp up our industrial base and get serious about Scotland's defences,” Mr Cole-Hamilton said. “That's why Liberal Democrats have set out clear plans for delivering more defence jobs and forging closer ties with our European allies after years of neglect.”
He referenced a personal experience: “A year ago, I drove with the charity Mighty Convoy to deliver ambulances to those fighting on the front line in Ukraine. No one should be in any doubt that unless Putin is defeated in Ukraine, he will strike again elsewhere. Meanwhile, America is no longer a reliable ally.”
Opportunity from danger
Mr Cole-Hamilton acknowledged that the world has become more dangerous but argued that “if handled correctly”, it could present an “opportunity for Scottish jobs and Scottish industry”. He criticised rival parties, stating: “The SNP are squeamish about keeping Scotland safe, while Reform are full of admiration for Putin. Neither of them can be trusted with our defence industry.”
He urged voters: “In many constituencies we are on the verge of winning against the SNP but, wherever you are, every vote for the Scottish Liberal Democrats on the second peach ballot will deliver change with fairness at its heart. Scotland deserves better. And with the Scottish Liberal Democrats, you can vote for it.”
Reactions
A Babcock spokesperson commented: “While most roles are filled locally, the specialist nature and availability of the skills required to support our build programme means we may need short-term international recruitment to meet delivery timelines. This ensures progress on vital defence programmes while we continue to strengthen Scotland's skilled workforce.”
An SNP spokesperson responded: “This is just the usual campaign rhetoric from Alex Cole-Hamilton – the reality is that the SNP have worked constructively with the Lib Dems in Parliament for years and that will continue after the election. The Lib Dems have voted through the last two SNP budgets and have voted for more than 90% of the SNP legislation under John Swinney's leadership. The Lib Dems know as well as anyone that the UK Government is letting Scotland down on defence spending – and that to ensure our safety in an increasingly dangerous world, our best future lies back in the European Union.”
