This article appears as part of the Unspun: Scottish Politics newsletter.

We need to cut tax to boost businesses and get Scotland’s economy firing on all cylinders. And that means a culture change at Holyrood and in St Andrews House.

Businesses – not government – powers economic growth, but it is the job of government to help create the conditions for businesses to thrive.

Our objective should be clear. To untangle the thicket of red tape which chokes the chances of profitable success – and to reduce the tax burden that drags them down, discouraging the inclination to grow employment, investment and risk-taking.

The Scottish Government needs to get real when it comes to driving economic growth because over the past decade the Scottish economy has consistently trailed behind the rest of the UK. 

In the five years to 2023, Scottish economic growth was 1.6 per cent as against a UK figure of 2.6 per cent, while over a 10-year period the respective rates were 9.8 per cent and 15.5 per cent.

These numbers do not lie. Scotland’s economy has lagged badly for far too long. But this isn’t just about numbers on a spreadsheet. This is about people's lives.

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Strong and sustained economic growth is the basis for defeating poverty and lifting living standards across the board. It’s about the jobs and wages which put food on the table, pay for family holidays and days out. It supports vibrant high streets and drives innovation and improvements in our lives.

I recently listened to SNP ministers brag about the numbers that would soon be in receipt of benefits. Creating a dependency culture might make socialist politicians feel good, but it does nothing to generate wealth and give people the conditions to thrive.

John Swinney was supposed to ‘reset’ relations with Scottish business, but it’s action that’s needed not warm words. And so far, there’s little evidence of the decisive shift needed to get Scotland’s economy fired up.

The nationalist administration needs to break out of its ‘high tax/high regulation’ comfort zone and begin to make the sweeping changes necessary to really back Scotland’s small businesses, employers and entrepreneurs.

So where should they start? First, they need to break their addiction to hiking tax rates. Business leaders have highlighted the negative effect punitive rates are having, with a recent survey by the Scottish Chambers of Commerce finding taxation had overtaken inflation as the issue most threatening to Scottish economic growth.

As the Chamber’s chairman Stephen Leckie has made clear, higher Scottish tax rates are having a serious impact in attracting and retaining talent in Scotland, contributing to the substantial labour challenges already being experienced by businesses.

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So, bringing down personal tax rates – a policy entirely within the powers of the Scottish Parliament – must be a priority for the Scottish Government if those talented people necessary to spur further economic growth in Scotland are to be recruited and retained.

And, under my leadership, the Scottish Conservatives would press for decisive action on this in the run-up to the next Scottish Budget.

Then there’s the extra burden being borne by many Scottish businesses because the Scottish Government has failed to replicate tax reliefs for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors in other parts of the UK.

This year in England, eligible businesses are benefitting from extended 75 per cent relief from their business rate bills, while in Wales relief at 40 per cent was introduced from April.

Swinney’s government refused to follow this lead, putting businesses north of the border at a substantial disadvantage. We need to level that playing field and give those over-burdened businesses the fighting change they need to succeed.

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And at the same time, there must be a more thorough assessment of the impact on small and medium sized businesses of any new regulations, an understanding of the burden those regulations place on businesses, and a commitment to root out unnecessary rules wherever they exist. We need smarter regulation to grow the economy, not a proliferation of red tape that strangles it.

Strong economic growth is the key to unlocking the potential of Scotland’s young people. It’s the route map to a better life for themselves, their families, their community and their country as a whole.

It’s where the secure, satisfying and rewarding jobs of the future will come from and it’s why our approach must be to unwaveringly back the small and medium sized businesses, risk-takers and entrepreneurs who are the unsung heroes of Scotland’s economy. All our futures depend on it.

Russell Findlay is a Scottish Conservative MSP for West Scotland and a candidate in the party's leadership contest.