The Fresh Talent Initiative was a Scottish Government policy framework to encourage people to settle in Scotland.New Scots: Attracting Fresh Talent to meet the Challenge of Growth scotland.gov.uk, accessed 4 November 2008 The initiative was launched in February 2004 by then First Minister, Jack McConnell as a way of countering the 'biggest challenge facing Scotland' of its falling population.FOREWORD scotland.gov.uk, accessed 4 November 2008
Since immigration is a matter reserved to the UK parliament in the legislation that established the Scottish Parliament in 1999 (the Scotland Act 1998), agreement had to be obtained from the Home Office for a key part of the initiative: to allow overseas graduates from Scottish universities, who express the intention of living and working in Scotland, to stay on for two years following graduation to seek employment. The Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland Scheme was up and running by summer 2005, applying to those who graduated that year.Encouraging Students At Scottish Universities To Stay In Scotland scotland.gov.uk, accessed 4 November 2008
Opposition towards the scheme was voiced by some English universities which felt that the scheme gave Scottish universities a competitive advantage in terms of attracting students from overseas.Scotland's Fresh Talent plan angers English universities ukimmigration.com, accessed 5 November 2008
The Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland Scheme was subsumed into the UK immigration system on 29 June 2008 when the UK government brought in a new points based immigration scheme.Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk, accessed 5 November 2008
See also Demographics of Scotland New Scot TalentScotland
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