A CALL has been made for an action plan for Longannet after figures showed 9,000 fewer young people in West Fife are in employment compared to figures in 2007.

The statistics have been called “damning” by one local council candidate, who has urged the Scottish Government to do more, including focusing on the regeneration of the Longannet power station site to bring thousands of jobs to the area.

Graeme Downie, who is Scottish Labour candidate for West Fife and Coastal Villages, believes places like Kincardine are being forgotten about and said it is young people in particular who are suffering.

The statistics, published by the Scottish Government, show that in the period from October 2007 to September 2008, there were 23,500 young people (16-24) in employment in Fife.

Between October 2020 to September 2021, there were 14,900 young people in employment in Fife – a drop of 8,600, or 11.7 per cent.

“Almost 9,000 fewer young people in work has enormous consequences for them, their families and the future of places like Kincardine," said Mr Downie.

“We saw the main stack at Longannet come down but still no plan from the SNP about how they can use that site to deliver mass employment to the area.

“Speaking to residents, neighbours and family, it is clear we are suffering a lost generation. Prospects are few, support is minimal and the SNP live in denial about the harm their policies are causing.

“West Fife has been forgotten about by the Scottish Government for too long."

A Scottish Government spokesperson said Scottish Enterprise and Scottish Power were collaborating to prepare the Longannet site for development.

"It is being actively promoted to investors," said the spokesperson. “The Spanish rolling stock engineering company, Talgo, which specialises in manufacturing fast, lightweight trains for countries including USA and Saudi Arabia, secured planning consent for a manufacturing base at Longannet and remains committed to bringing operations to Scotland.

"Scottish Enterprise is ready to provide support once the company releases its revised plans."

The spokesperson said the unemployment rate for 16- to 24-year-olds in Scotland had decreased since the year 2007/08, however, added that they knew young people had been affected badly by the pandemic.

"We have invested £130 million through our Young Person’s Guarantee since it was launched in November 2020 with the aim of supporting over 24,000 new and enhanced employment, training and educational opportunities for young people," they added.

“This includes 11,000 opportunities for young people through local employability partnerships, including the partnership in Fife, and 9,000 additional places in colleges, including short, industry-focused and fast track courses.”

“The latest Labour market monthly briefing suggests employment prospects for young people in Fife are improving, with the claimant count rate for 16-24-year-olds falling by 2.6 percentage points in the year to November 2021.”