Scotland would be a “safe bet” for investors, the country’s Finance Secretary insisted, ahead of details of a new bond scheme being announced by the First Minister.
Shona Robison welcomed the decision by two global credit rating agencies to award Scotland the same credit rating as the UK.
Moody’s rated the Scottish Government as Aa3 while S&P Global rated it as AA, both identical to the UK’s sovereign rating.
Confirmation of this came ahead of John Swinney setting out more details of the government’s planned bond scheme – nicknamed “kilts” in a play on the UK equivalent of gilts – on Thursday.
Ministers in Edinburgh say that being able to issue bonds will allow further funding of infrastructure investment – with Ms Robison saying Scotland’s rating was higher than countries including Spain, Italy and Japan.
Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme, the Scottish Finance Secretary said the high credit ratings would “encourage investment here in Scotland”.
She insisted: “This will very much persuade investors that Scotland is a safe bet.”
The Finance Secretary continued: “The purpose and the benefit of these credit ratings is absolutely fundamental to increasing investor engagement in Scotland.
“That will be important for enhanced visibility in the global capital markets and a stronger platform for economic opportunities.
“We think this will be good for Scotland, good for Scotland’s economy, and that is why we’re moving forward with it.”
The move comes after the then first minister Humza Yousaf in 2023 commissioned initial work with the goal of issuing bonds before the end of the current Scottish Parliament session.
Asked when the bonds would be issued, what sort of money the Scottish Government would look to raise and what it would pay for, Ms Robison said these details would be set out by the First Minister later on Thursday.
The Moody’s report however included Scottish independence as a possible factor which could see Scotland’s credit rating downgraded.
The report said: “Although not our baseline scenario, Scottish independence could exert downward pressure on the rating by introducing heightened uncertainty about the institutional framework and potentially raising financial stability risks.”
Ms Robison however stressed the “firm foundations” of Scotland’s economy “in whatever constitutional arrangements we have in the future”.
She insisted: “It shows that Scotland’s economy is built on firm foundations.
“Any transition to Scotland becoming an independent country would be carefully managed to uphold that investor confidence, protecting Scotland’s public finances and to support long term economic prosperity.”