Media Release
Disaster Fallout Can Lead To Positive Economic Change
Disasters like foot and mouth disease in Britain can act as a catalyst for accelerated economic change, according to an
international specialist in regional development.
Scottish Enterprise education manager Gordon McVie is speaking at this week’s Regional Development Conference in
Rotorua, promoted and organised by the Ministry of Economic Development. Scottish Enterprise specialises in educating
communities about enterprise opportunities and Gordon McVie was last year appointed by British Prime Minister Tony Blair
to lead the Scottish arm of a UK campaign to promote youth enterprise.
Gordon McVie says it is inevitable that disasters such as the foot and mouth epidemic that hit Britain this year will
have an economic impact. However, disasters also act to accelerate economic change, and managed correctly, the long term
impact on the economy can be positive.
“A prime example this year is the devastating impact of foot and mouth disease on Dumfries and Galloway, a Scottish
region with a local economy heavily reliant on agriculture. The economic impact was compounded by the region’s reliance
on livestock-related business – 23 percent of the region’s GDP compared to 3 percent for the rest of Scotland.
“Foot and mouth has been an economic disaster for this region but it can also provide opportunities if the right support
is in place. We’ve got a recovery plan in place to put the economy of this area back on track in the shortest possible
timeframe. We’re using this disaster as a basis for achieving accelerated economic change.”
Gordon McVie has also found that high quality advice, information and support can also pay far greater dividends than
compensation payouts. “In this case the only people getting compensation are the farmers – you don’t compensate the
people further down the supply chain whose businesses are also going down the tubes.
“We’ve gone in and worked with these businesses to help them diversify and seek new opportunities. If you were a haulage
contractor who only transported sheep, then you’ve got a structural weakness in your business because post-foot and
mouth we’re no longer moving sheep. You need to look for new avenues of business.
“Foot and mouth is a disaster but it has also led to significant creativity. It doesn’t have to be a blight on our
economic lives for ever.”
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