Minutes: 09 November 2023

1. Declaration of interests:

John Mason was invited to declare any relevant interests. No such interests were declared.

The following interests were declared in relation to Agenda item 3—

Jeremy Balfour indicated that he had been a Councillor for City of Edinburgh Council
Roz McCall indicated that she had been a Councillor for Perth and Kinross Council
Marie McNair indicated that she had been a Councillor for West Dunbartonshire Council
Paul O'Kane indicated that he had been a Councillor for East Renfrewshire Council
Collette Stevenson indicated that she had been a Councillor for South Lanarkshire Council.

2. Decision on taking business in private:

The Committee agreed to take items 6 and 7 in private.

3. Subordinate legislation:

The Committee considered the following negative instrument— Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Amendment (No. 3) Regulations 2023

The Committee agreed to make no recommendations in relation to the instrument.

4. Kinship Care:

The Committee took evidence from—

Natalie Don, Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise, Dawn Abell, Unit Head: Caregivers and Louisa Brown, Family Care Team Leader, Improving Lives for People with Care Experience, Scottish Government .

5. Scottish Employment Injuries Advisory Council Bill:

The Committee took evidence on the Bill at Stage 1 from—

Dr Lesley Rushton, Chair, Industrial Injuries Advisory Council;

Dr Mark Simpson, Interim Co-Chair, Scottish Commission on Social Security.

6. Consideration of evidence:

The Committee considered the evidence heard earlier in the meeting.

7. Social Security (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill:

The Committee agreed its approach to the scrutiny of the Bill at Stage 1.