A strong and vibrant economy is crucial to unlocking the future potential of our communities and will provide employment and income which will benefit all in the Islands. It will also help us retain our young people and attract new families. To encourage inward migration and support local businesses it is essential that high-speed digital infrastructure is available across all communities in the Outer Hebrides.

Economic growth should also support all that we value and therefore contribute to a wellbeing economy. Assets such as our natural heritage and Gàidhlig language and culture and our overall quality of life are all highly rated and can be used to our economic advantage. The growth of the tourism industry requires the Comhairle to work with partners to shape the developments, impacts and business opportunities that this growth presents. Our commitments are to:

• Deliver the development projects associated with the Islands Deal;
• Develop a local approach to digitalisation that supports infrastructure, customer engagement and business development;
• Prioritise investment in Comhairle buildings and infrastructure maximising effectiveness of available internal and external funding sources;
• Support skills development across our communities and workforce; and
• Support growth in small and medium sized businesses.

A Suite of KPIs  was selected to provide a consistent basis for the Comhairle to assess if the outcomes of people in the Western Isles are improving over time and support data-driven decision making. The published 2022/23 data for the majority of the statistics is not yet available due to a lag in the publication of data. For reference, the Official statistics: forthcoming publications provides a 12-month calendar of statistical releases.