Businesses in Scotland: 2023
Information on the number of businesses operating in Scotland.
This document is part of a collection
Local Authority Areas (registered businesses only)
In the year to March 2023, the business stock decreased in the majority of Scotland’s local authority areas. The registered business stock fell the most in the Aberdeenshire (-465 businesses). Only four local authority areas experienced an increase in the registered business stock between 2022 and 2023 - Clackmannanshire, Shetland Islands, South Ayrshire and Midlothian.
The share of private sector employment in Abroad-owned businesses varied by local authority area. For example, 33.4% of West Lothian’s employment was in Abroad-owned businesses. In comparison, 7.6% of the Orkney Islands’ employment was in Abroad-owned businesses.
The share of employment in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) also varied by local authority area. SMEs accounted for a much larger share of employment in the more rural local authority areas. As at March 2023, SMEs accounted for 81.6% of private sector employment in the Orkney Islands. This compares to 38.8% in the Glasgow City.
Contact
For enquiries about this publication please contact:
Marina Curran
Business & Innovation Statistics
Office of the Chief Economic Adviser
e-mail: industrystatistics@gov.scot
For general enquiries about Scottish Government statistics please contact:
Office of the Chief Statistician
e-mail: statistics.enquiries@gov.scot
There is a problem
Thanks for your feedback