Chamber and committees

My predecessors in my portfolio, transport portfolios and others have made themselves more than available in the inquiry that has been conducted in this case. They can, obviously, speak for themselves on the decisions that they have taken. However, my overriding concern is to ensure that we complete the vessels as quickly, timeously and cost effectively as possible. That is what island communities deserve and it is one of the most important elements in my portfolio. I will keep pushing as hard as possible to ensure the timeous and cost-effective delivery of the vessels.

Hmm.

I have set out why I cannot publish it. There will be a debate about that—and you, convener, will perhaps hold a different view on it than I do—but I am not willing to put the yard at a competitive disadvantage or jeopardise its ability to compete for future orders.

The work that Teneo did went into a substantial amount of detail. It worked with the yard to ensure that all potential permutations on risks to the contract were considered, particularly on 802. It was able to give advice off the back of that. The work involved more than just looking at numbers on a spreadsheet or comparing costs; it examined the processes that are in place at the yard. It is well recognised that Teneo is an international expert in the field, and the advice that it has provided has given me assurance that I was able to take the correct decision in issuing written authority to see the completion of 801 and 802.

I am happy to take the question and perhaps respond in writing, convener.

Clear damage has been done to Scotland’s economy by decisions that have been taken that were outwith our control. Brexit has had a major impact on Scotland’s economy—its impact has been greater than that of the Covid pandemic. The UK Government’s mini budget, which was delivered by Kwasi Kwarteng and Liz Truss, has also had a devastating impact.

The key risks to Scotland’s economy come from areas that are outwith our control. We are doing what we can to mitigate those by providing increased business support and by looking at where we can maximise growth and job opportunities—for example, through the entrepreneurial tech scalers network that I mentioned.

The better Ferguson performs, the more likely it is to return to private ownership. If interested parties come forward to talk to the Government or our agencies, we will take that interest seriously and do what we can to ensure that the yard is returned to private ownership as quickly as possible, as a commercial going concern.

It is very important. We have more than 1,000 GlobalScot members. Earlier this year, Mr Robertson outlined the importance of the GlobalScot network in meeting business, academic and other needs. When I was in Japan, I was able to meet one of our newest recruits to the network, operating across Japan, America and Europe. They give us incredibly strong contacts and advocate for Scotland, so we should utilise them more, not less.

I will bring in Gary Gillespie.

I will bring in Colin Cook at this point. I do not know the current value off the top of my head.

Yes, absolutely. Ms Hyslop and I spoke about some of that yesterday. We discussed the need to ensure that we have a strong domestic supply chain to feed our offshore wind opportunities. We will continue to do what we can to make sure that that is brought forward.

I will bring in the chief economist to supplement that and give more detail.