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By a Newsnet reporter
The SNP has welcomed comments from Steve Felice, the Global President of computer giant Dell, that the result of a Yes vote to independence would not change their commitment to Scotland.
Speaking to the Scotland on Sunday newspaper while on a visit to Scotland, Mr Felice was asked if the company would change its plans to invest in Scotland, depending on whether Scotland chose to become independent or to remain governed by Westminster.
Mr Felice replied: “I cannot think of any difference. We are an organisation that deals with one customer at a time. So the customer is the government here.”
Felice added that he wanted “to reiterate our commitment to Scotland”. He said that Dell’s relationship with the country had worked “extraordinarily well”.
Dell already employs 800 staff at its Glasgow call centre. Last year the company announced expansion plans which would see an increase in staff numbers to 1,000. 1,000. Dell also owns the information security company SecureWorks, which has offices in Edinburgh.
The computing giant joins the list of major international companies which have stated that the forthcoming independence referendum makes no difference to their confidence in Scotland, despite repeated claims by anti-independence parties that the referendum was damaging to the economy.
In November last year, Abu Dhabi oil giant Taqa announced plans to invest £630 million in the North Sea over the next three years. Major investment plans in Scotland have also recently been announced by, among others, the electronics company Samsung, and the Swiss banking software company Avaloq which plans to create 500 jobs in Edinburgh over the next five years.
Chic Brodie, SNP MSP for South Scotland and member of the Energy, Economy and Tourism Committee, said:
“I warmly welcome Mr Felice’s comments on Dell’s commitment to doing business here in Scotland, both before and after independence.
“Scotland is a fantastic place to do business with a skilled workforce, excellent resources and post-independence will become an even more attractive proposition for Dell, and other employers, when the country gains the economic levers of control and can lower levels of Corporation Tax.
“A number of global companies including; Taqa, Avaloq and Samsung are expressing their confidence in Scotland by investing and creating jobs here.
“Dell is the latest company to say they are not against Scotland taking full fiscal and political powers independence, and their comments – along with that the confidence placed in Scotland by Human Resource group Ceridian and representatives from BNY Mellon – will be a blow to the anti-independence parties’ scaremongering efforts.”
for my own business; the long term planning has turned to “What if Scotland votes no and no”.
That’s a real worry for us because it is our opinion that Scotland will be screwed. I do not believe that it will be a “status quo” situation, I think we will be a lot worse off and I wouldn’t put it past the UK gov’t to treat us Scots like they did post ’79. I doubt that many of the MOD and NGO’s will return to Scotland after a no/no vote.
I wonder when Scottish businesses will start thinking “We have to do this”.
What kind of business is it?
You have described my nightmare.
the tricky part is that this is not a positive way for independence to be sold; i.e. “you must vote yes otherwise we’re doomed”.
The part that I can’t get my head around is that the anti-independence parties are not providing any reason for Scottish businesses to back a no/no campaign; because there is no guarantee about what the shape of a UK version of Scotland will be post vote. I do not believe it will be the same as now.
I think we can be grown up and say publically that some kind of asset stripping has been going on – it’s not as if all the assets will suddenly return post no/no vote.
We’ll be strip mined, gagged, starved of investment, child poverty will make what we’ve got now look like a small problem and they’ll legislate to ensure that we can NEVER achieve independence.
Just make sure that we do it THIS TIME. The price of failure and all that………
Kindest regards,
Saltire Groppenslosh
And they will once again have a mandate to mock Scotland and the people of Scotland for another three hundred years. Mind you, if Scots vote NO, then they will get, in my opinion, just exactly what they deserve.