The Scottish Government is proposing to create a new Scotland-wide statutory board to co-ordinate the activities of Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, including Scottish Development International, Skills Development Scotland and the Scottish Funding Council.

A report from the first phase of a review of Scotland’s enterprise and skills services also proposes “a new service for the south of Scotland.”

Economy Secretary Keith Brown said: “We are proud of our enterprise and skills agencies, and in recent years their efforts have contributed to real improvements in our economic performance.

“But we know that further improvement is required – our ambition is for Scotland to rank among the top performing OECD nations for productivity, equality, sustainability and wellbeing.

“Since the review was announced, the EU Referendum result has made the economic context more challenging.

“It requires that we renew our focus and prioritise our efforts

“This review has focused on how we can build on existing strengths and successes to further improve the enterprise and skills support system in Scotland.

“This will ensure a system in which all of our agencies work both hand in glove with each other and collaboratively with our business, academic and civic partners to optimise economic impact across the whole of Scotland.”