John Swinney has tried to breathe fresh life into stale claims that Scotland is in line for a low carbon bonanza as the SNP Government puts faith in an initiative that will require massive support from UK taxpayers amid pressure on public spending.

Mr Swinney rehearsed a familiar script about Scotland’s exceptional advantages in terms of renewable energy generation in a speech to a conference focused on the key offshore wind sector last week.

The first minister said Scotland was uniquely placed to benefit from a golden age for the industry in an address that could have been delivered by his predecessors Alex Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon or the hapless Humza Yousaf.

Mr Swinney reckons Scotland has laid the groundwork for success in a floating windfarm market that could be worth £100bn.

“The growth and success of Scotland’s offshore wind industry is not only an ambition of my Government, it is a priority for me personally. Delivering on its promise will not only deliver our global climate obligations, but create significant new jobs and economic opportunities,” he said.

Speaking after the event he told PA: “Scotland’s made huge progress and has reaped the rewards of very significant investment in the renewable energy industry."

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But Mr Swinney's comments ignore the awkward fact that giants have made high-profile investments in windfarms off Scotland without doing the country’s economy much good.

While the SNP Government likes to trot out statistics showing how much green power is generated in Scotland, the investment concerned has chiefly benefited firms based outside the country. Ministers have failed to ensure that Scotland has the supply chain infrastructure to capitalise on related opportunities.

Last week a progress report on a huge windfarm off England indicated how much Scotland has missed out on.

RWE said it was preparing........

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