SCOTTISH Labour leader Kezia Dugdale unveiled plans to woo business yesterday, claiming that she wanted a “fresh start” between Labour and Scotland’s business community.

Ms Dugdale told business leaders that tackling the gap in educational achievement between rich and poor areas of Scotland was “in the best interests” of the country’s young people and businesses.

She raised the prospect of tax rises next year as part of a “radical package” to redistribute wealth.

Ms Dugdale said every school pupil, regardless of their background, needed to be given the skills “to make their way in the world and compete for the jobs of the future.”

She said that, “for too many kids in Scotland today, how much money their parents earn determines their ability to get on in life, rather than their potential, work rate and ambition.

Ms Dugdale said the education gap not only held young people back but was bad for business and the economy.