16:52 Ann McKechin (Glasgow North) (Lab)

Where are the big ideas? Where is the narrative that allows industry and finance to make the necessary commitments? Where is the financial support to allow us to enter those new industries? The establishment of the Green investment bank is welcome, but as one leading figure in the renewable energy sector told me this week, it must not be the bank of last resort. It needs to lead the way, not take the cast-offs that no one else wants to touch. It needs to be big enough to meet the challenges and opportunities we face. Instead, we have had a painfully slow start. The original concept has been watered down and now the bank will not have full borrowing powers until 2016. It is not fast enough or deep enough to do the job.

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