Chamber and committees

Thank you. That completes our consideration of the instruments.

Good morning, and welcome to the 29th meeting in 2024 of the Criminal Justice Committee. We have received apologies from Katy Clark. Pauline McNeill is—we hope—attending remotely; she is having some connection issues at the moment. Fulton MacGregor will join the meeting shortly.

Does the committee agree to take agenda item 4 in private?

Members indicated agreement.

That was a helpful setting of the scene. I will ask a general question by way of a follow-up to your opening remarks.

You spoke about the importance of collaboration with other agencies, such as the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and Police Scotland, and you mentioned the work on global supply chains, which brings you into the international context. Could you say a bit more about how those relationships work and how important they are, and perhaps explain some of the challenges that exist, especially with regard to the global or international aspect of tackling food crime?

When we talk about the global context, an issue that crosses my mind is the impact of Brexit. Has that had any impact on co-operation arrangements that were previously in place, whether in relation to intelligence and information sharing or even simply the practicalities of the global food supply chain?

Thank you for that. Ian, would you like to come in?

Thank you very much—that was fascinating. I will now bring in other members, starting with Russell Findlay.

I will come in on your points about the premium reputation, particularly on food and drink production in Scotland. We know that small businesses make up a huge proportion of our economy. I am aware that, earlier this year or last year, you produced a toolkit for businesses to support them to become fraud proof. Can you say more about the toolkit?

We have spoken about partner agencies such as Police Scotland and the Crown Office, but there are other partners—for example, the Federation of Small Businesses—that could promote the toolkit. Are you linked into those industry bodies?

Is that information that you are able to share at this point?

I would welcome that, and I think that other members would, too. Food crime is clearly a growing issue, and it has two aspects of criminality and of public health and harm. I think I can speak for other members when I welcome that proposal.