EMPTY streets, deserted office blocks and the shutters of retail outlets firmly closed, Scotland's largest city was almost unrecognisable during months of lockdown.

It had gone from a vibrant, bustling city with a flagship retail industry to a ghost town overnight as towns and cities across the UK had to shutdown.

Its city leaders focused on an economic strategy to lead Glasgow out of the pandemic - a city which faced tougher level three restrictions for longer than other parts of the country.

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Now city council officers are working on a new Glasgow Economic Strategy in recognition that the pandemic has changed the city’s economy. The council says this new strategy will focus on three challenges facing the city – productivity, inclusive growth and climate change.

Councillor Susan Aitken, Leader of Glasgow City Council, said: “The Action Plan which the Glasgow Economic Recovery Group developed has already made an economic impact and will continue guide our economic recovery in a way that meets our objectives. The need to respond to the major economic challenges posed by the pandemic led to the establishment of the group, and its members - representing sectors from across the city - rose to the challenge.”

While the recovery group (GERG) has now wound down, its executive group – with members from the city council, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, and the academic sector – will continue to meet to oversee the implementation of the Action Plan. Councillors were this week given an update and review of the recovery group's achievements.

Another key area the council will look at is the idea of green ports. It follows on from the Scottish Government’s announcement on Green Ports, which adapt the UK Government’s Freeport proposals with tax and custom reliefs offered on the condition of adopting Fair Work practices and contributing to Net Zero targets. Glasgow City Region is working on a bid with private sector partners.

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There was also been further development of a ‘Glasgow Narrative’ which will showcase the city’s assets and business edge on an international stage and drive inward investment, and this will be used alongside a recently-launched digital tool – Zoom Prospector – which highlights key city strengths such as specialisms, skills, talent and innovation districts.

Two major projects identified as priorities for economic recovery in the GERG Action Plan are Clyde Mission and the Glasgow Metro. Council officers have been working with the Scottish Government to accelerate investment in the Clyde Mission project, and in December 2020, funding of £11million – around £5million for projects in the city – was announced to support economic recovery. The development of the Glasgow Metro – a recommendation of the Glasgow Connectivity Commission – is now included in Transport Scotland’s Strategic Transport Project Review.

It was the first response of the city and its partners in the private, academic, trade union and third sectors to create the recovery group in March 2020.

An early piece of the group’s work was its submission in May 2020 of the city’s response to the Scottish Government’s Independent Advisory Group, following this up in June with a detailed implementation plan of Glasgow-specific actions and asks, and the development of an Action Plan that was agreed in August 2020.

It was recognised business support would be crucial during this time, and council officers have so far allocated around £284million to Glasgow businesses in Scottish Government funds.

A City Centre Task Force, with members representing local, national and UK government; the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, and representatives from the retail, hospitality and events sectors, looked at the particular challenges facing the city centre and those sectors in particular, with sharply reduced footfall. Its members developed a range of actions to support the city centre’s recovery before and during the lifting of restrictions.

One element of the recovery group's role saw them ask the Scottish Government to scale-up and replicate of the Glasgow Guarantee to support those people most affected by the economic impact of the pandemic, particularly those leaving school, college and university. In August 2020, the Scottish Government announced the £120million Young Person’s Guarantee, a scheme aiming to help people aged 16-24 access employment, training, volunteering or education, and Glasgow received £4.3million of the £30million allocated to Scottish local authorities in 2020/21.

Further funding for people in other demographic groups came from two other sources: firstly, £250,000 funding was made available to the council to enhance the PACE (Partnership Action on Continued Employment) scheme, which directly supports and advises those recently made unemployed as a result of the pandemic, focusing on the older age group; and the two-year extension to the European Social Fund, supporting Glaswegians of all ages facing multiple barriers to employment, such as disability, lone parents, the BAME community, those with health conditions and people who face addiction homelessness or are ex-offenders.

The contribution to economic recovery that the film and broadcast sector – traditionally, a sector in which Glasgow performs very well - can make was boosted earlier in 2021 with funding of £4million from Glasgow City Council and almost £8million from the Scottish Government to develop a TV Studio and Drama Production Hub at the Kelvin Hall. The hub will drive job creation, skills development and growth in the supply chain of this vibrant sector.