More than 100 Scottish Enterprise staff are to be “refocused” to work on helping Scottish businesses prepare for Brexit.

With less than three weeks to go before the UK is due to leave the EU, Economy Secretary Derek Mackay announced the number of staff working at the “Prepare for Brexit” call centre in Clydebank will be scaled up to meet increased demand.

Mackay said: “The UK Government continues to ignore Scotland’s interests and Scottish Government analysis shows that all Brexit outcomes will damage the economy.

“A ‘No Deal’ Brexit could lead to a potential shrinking of our economy by up to 7%, a drop in exports by up to 20% and reduced business investment in Scotland by £1 billion in 2019 but the Prime Minister’s deal will also cause major lasting damage to jobs, living standards and public services compared with EU membership.

“Last year we launched Prepare for Brexit, a multi-agency campaign aimed at informing companies on a wide range of potential Brexit impacts and encouraging them to proactively prepare.

“Just as we are intensifying our work to prepare for all outcomes, more and more businesses in Scotland are making their own preparations as best they can.

“That is why we are increasing the number of staff dealing with calls from businesses looking for practical advice and why more than 100 Scottish Enterprise Staff will be refocused to work entirely on helping businesses prepare.

“However we won’t be able to mitigate all the damage of Brexit which is why the UK Government should immediately rule out No Deal and change course.”

www.prepareforbrexit.scot is a dedicated website which hosts a Brexit self-assessment tool to help businesses identify how Brexit might affect them, providing recommendations for action to help their planning activities.