A demographic deficit

Fresh Talent was a piece of forward thinking. The initiative, set up in October 2004 as a key policy to turn around the trend of an ageing and declining population by attracting skilled people of working age to Scotland, is regarded as an important legacy of the former First Minister, Jack McConnell. The initial three-year pilot scheme to fill the skills gap and overcome a demographic deficit, which was among the worst in Europe, was extended by the SNP government until October this year.