Press Release
Scotland can lead the world in Community Wealth Building, new report finds
17 December 2025
17 December 2025
New report urges Scottish Government to embed Community Wealth Building across all policy areas to tackle deepening inequalities.
Future Economy Scotland has today published a new report calling on the Scottish Government to mainstream Community Wealth Building across Scotland’s economic strategy, warning that doing so is essential to address entrenched inequality and build a fair, green and resilient economy.
Earlier this year, the Scottish Government introduced the Community Wealth Building Bill [1] – making Scotland the first nation to hardwire the framework into law. But passing legislation is only the starting point, the report argues. To deliver meaningful change, community wealth building must be woven into every major economic decision, from procurement and investment to land reform and industrial strategy.
Such steps are needed to narrow widening wealth gaps, tackle climate change, and ensure wealth stays in local economies rather than being extracted. Community Wealth Building, already tested in pioneering regions across the UK and internationally, offers a practical, place-based approach to grow, retain and democratise wealth within communities. The report outlines a series of bold recommendations across the five pillars of community wealth building, including:
- Progressive procurement: Embed social and environmental goals into procurement from the outset, and expand community benefit requirements across public contracts.
- Plural ownership: Promote democratic and inclusive business models, and reflect their contribution in national economic indicators.
- Socially productive land use: Strengthen Community Right to Buy powers, scale strategic public land acquisition, improve transparency, and establish a Scottish Land Agency.
- Local financial power: Redirect pension funds into local green investment, develop mission-led banking, and create a new community wealth fund.
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Fair employment: Strengthen Fair Work First, support insourcing, and advance a green industrial strategy that protects workers and communities.
“If properly harnessed, community wealth building can be a powerful antidote to Scotland’s stark imbalances of power and wealth. It offers a practical route to tackle entrenched inequalities and renew local economies from the ground up. The new Bill is a vital step forward, but legislation alone will not deliver transformation.
“To truly shift Scotland’s economic trajectory, community wealth building must be embedded across all major policy areas – from procurement and investment to land reform and industrial strategy. With sustained action and political will, Scotland has an opportunity to lead the world – and create a fairer, more resilient economy as a result.”
Neil McInroy, Global Lead for Community Wealth Building at the Democracy Collaborative and co-author of the report, said:
“Scotland has already embarked on a bold journey toward community wealth building, with growing momentum across local authorities and national policy. We already have practice and a movement. This has begun to shift economic thinking – centering local ownership, fair work and democratic control as the foundations of a more inclusive and resilient economy. This progress is encouraging, but we now need to go further and faster. This report shows how.
“As global crises intensify and the need for economic transformation becomes ever more urgent, community wealth building should become a cornerstone of Scotland’s economic policy, strategy, and development. By deepening the approach, Scotland can take greater control of its economic destiny. This is not simply policy innovation – it is about building an economy that truly serves people, place and planet.”
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
[1] The Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill was introduced on 20 March 2025 and is now at Stage 2: https://www.parliament.scot/bills-and-laws/bills/s6/community-wealth-building-scotland-bill
[2] Future Economy Scotland is a non-partisan think tank that aims to create a new economy that is democratic, sustainable and just. The organisation does not have a formal stance on Scotland’s constitutional future, and is not aligned to any political party or any politician. The organisation is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee operating with charitable principles.
[3] To book an interview with the authors, please contact 07909107890