It is hard to believe another summer has been and is now all but gone.

However much we may wish to deny it, there can be no doubt that the schools are back, the nights are drawing in, and supermarket shelves are already filling up with Halloween-related merchandise. Any day now, someone is going to mention Christmas.

Many among us will groan at the thought but, for businesses, forward-planning is an essential prerequisite for survival and success.

In recent years, the ability to prepare with any certainty has been hampered by a series of setbacks, not least those caused by the rising costs linked to international events and conflict. That has been laid bare in every quarterly survey conducted by the Scottish Chambers of Commerce over the last five years.

New survey flags continuing inflationary pressures across Scotland

Short periods of improving business confidence have too often been followed by another setback. The consequences are visible across the economy: in the investment that is held back, the projects that do not go ahead, and the jobs that are never created.  

International events have played their part, but policy choices have often accentuated the pressure. From sharp rises in national insurance contributions to the growing tax gap between Scotland and the rest of the UK, businesses have too often found the goalposts moving just as recovery seemed within reach.

We can only hope these old habits are left behind with the arrival of........

© Herald Scotland