The criticism from the umbrella organisation comes as new data shows Scottish government support for textiles, one of Scotland’s flagship industries, has been slashed by 13% since the SNP came to power.

David Breckenridge chairs the Scottish Enterprise-administered Scottish Textiles Industry Association, to give it its full name, and the National Textiles Forum. He contrasted the Scottish government’s “inaction” with measures taken in Europe and in Wales.

Breckenridge, who is also managing director of Moorbrook Textiles, added that ministers’ “staggering inability” to grasp the extent of the crisis facing the sector put the long-term future of the Scottish industry in danger.

In one of the most potentially damaging full-frontal assaults by a senior business leader on the SNP Holyrood administration to date, Breckenridge said: “Output in the Scottish textiles sector fell by 8.5% during the first quarter of 2009. I know from my own business, where we are negotiating over an unprecedented 10 redundancies, the human story behind these statistics.

“The inability of Scottish ministers to grasp the scale and immediacy of the crisis is staggering. The Welsh Assembly government implemented a wage and training subsidy programme in January this year. Similar programmes are operational in Austria, Denmark, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

“When pressed on the implementation of similar initiatives in Scotland, ministers dissemble and refer to an ‘economic recovery programme’ which is bereft of tangible support for businesses.

“The result? Critical mass is threatened in industrial sectors hitherto labelled ‘priority’ by the Scottish government and the skills base is eroded to such an extent that opportunities will inevitably be lost during the upturn.”

Scotland’s textile sector, which employs over 17,000 people in around 450 companies, is worth over £1 billion to the Scottish GDP. Breckenridge insisted it was not looking for handouts from Holyrood.

The Welsh Assembly Government’s £48 million “ProAct” scheme provides funding for employers who are facing difficulties, helping them prepare for recovery by up-skilling staff on short-time working and retaining skilled workers who face being made redundant. Individuals can receive up to £2000 of funding for training and a wage subsidy of £2000.

“No-one is looking for massive subsidies for lame-duck companies” Breckenridge said. “The FSB and STUC recently issued a call for a temporary wage-and-training subsidy programme for Scotland similar to the programme introduced by [Welsh Assembly investment body] Finance Wales to provide SMEs with the committed and affordable capital they require to grow.

“Other countries have provided substantial sums for export credit insurance. In doing so they recognised that support should be temporary, targeted at inherently viable companies, and provide only a proportion of wages.

“We in the sector support this call as the first element of a package that will truly support businesses through the current recession. To continue to ignore such calls jeopardises jobs, skills and potentially the long-term future of a key Scottish industry.”

Stephen Boyd, assistant director of the STUC said: “The STUC is seriously concerned that the UK and Scottish Governments have thus far failed to provide a level of support to manufacturing firms comparable to that offered in other countries.

“There are genuine concerns over critical mass and the sustainability of the skills base in key sectors like textiles. Immediate action is required on a short-term, focused wage-and-training subsidy programme and assistance with export credit insurance. Steady progress towards a Scottish Investment Bank must be maintained in order to provide the funding necessary for sustainable growth in the longer term.”

Jeremy Purvis, Liberal Democrat MSP for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, the Borders constituency where much of the Scottish textile industry is concentrated, told The Sunday Herald: “I don’t think the Scottish government appreciates the fragility of the Scottish textiles sector.

“There is not a company in the sector that doesn’t have to face very difficult decisions [ie redundancies]. Uniform across the sector is the need for the kind of credible support for exports that we have seen elsewhere in the economy. The big failure of the Scottish government is that it doesn’t recognise the need for this.”

“Competitor countries like Italy and Portugal have invested more in the downturn, particularly in their marketing, but to do as the Scottish government has and cut the core grant is an unbelievably stupid thing to do in a downturn.”

“The problem is that although the Scottish textiles sector has seen a decline, there has always been a sufficient labour pool in the Borders to allow industry to manage, but now that labour pool is getting more elderly, it’s more and more difficult to recruit, as more and more people are being lost to the sector.“

In a response to Breckenridge’s representations, Enterprise Minister Jim Mather said: “The Scottish Government has responded rapidly to the economic downturn to ensure that businesses and individuals have access to the necessary advice, support and training to weather the recession.

“ScotAction is the Scottish Government’s integrated skills package combining new and improved measures to help individuals and businesses through the recession.

“It will provide skills assistance -- including wage subsidies in some cases -- for training, to help Scottish people and busineses survive the current downturn and thrive when the economy starts to pick up.”

Data obtained by Purvis from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre showed the annual Scottish Government grant to Scottish Textiles, which is used to advise and support firms in the sector, fell from a peak of £630,000 in 2007/8 to £523,000 in 2009/10, a fall of 13%.