Chamber and committees

The Prime Minister’s intention to use the military to prevent asylum seekers reaching the UK is deeply immoral, as is the possibility of trading access to Covid vaccines for the right to open detention centres in other countries.

The First Minister will be aware of the appalling circumstances faced by many asylum seekers in Scotland, including in Aberdeen, in my region. They are accommodated in hotels, but not given basic support or things like toiletries, culturally sensitive food, language classes and so on. Although we do not have the powers to counter those racist policies, we can make sure that asylum seekers and refugees in Scotland are treated better.

I am sure that the First Minister will join me in condemning the plans by the Prime Minister and his cruel and inhumane Home Office. Will she also outline what lessons have been learned from the tragic death at the Park Inn in Glasgow, and say what more we can do to prevent the growth in the use of institutional accommodation across Scotland and improve the support available through local authorities so that asylum seekers are treated with dignity?

We know that a range of companies and investors are already buying up land in Scotland to use for carbon offsetting. BrewDog and Shell are two examples. Private investment funds and asset managers are generating and selling carbon credits. Even the Scottish National Investment Bank is putting money into that. Will the minister outline how much land has been bought for such speculation, how much public money has been invested in such approaches and what we can do within our limited powers to ensure that Scotland does not get sold for carbon-offsetting greenwash and to protect communities from displacement by green lairds?

Good morning, minister. I want to explore the impact on economic development a little more. We know that the economic development landscape in Scotland is different to that in the rest of the UK and we have heard in the evidence we have already gathered that this new regime has the potential to create greater uncertainty, higher costs and more risk aversion, and that there is a particular issue around the incentive for more community-based support and community-focused schemes. Can you outline some of the impacts that you have identified in this area? If we can mitigate them through discussions with the UK Government, that is fine, but if we cannot, what options are open for us to ensure that we do not suffer those negative consequences?

That is helpful. I will move on to a linked issue. Cabinet secretary, you mentioned the clear context of the budget—the pandemic and the other issues that we are dealing with—and you have spoken about the support that is needed for businesses and the need to have excellence in what we do and not mediocrity across the board. You talked about the importance of making sure that people in our communities are ready for the labour market, but the labour market is not an end in itself; it is there to tackle some of the challenges and the structural inequalities that you mentioned will be included in the economic strategy.

Will you give us a little more information on how we can deliver the pace of change that we need around fair work and conditionality, not only in relation to fair work, but in relation to wellbeing as well? It could be argued that, if the economy does not create happy and healthy communities, it is failing on one measure. My question is about fair work, conditionality and the pace of change. Are we getting the balance right?

One of our concerns, as Fiona Hyslop has already mentioned, is the asymmetry of power as it applies to the balance between communities at a very local, if not regional, level. I appreciate what you say. It may be too early to identify examples of issues arising, but are you or your officials looking at a specific area of work to ensure that we do not lose very specific community-focused development opportunities that may not apply or relate to some of the broader principles and broader examples that would be done on a bigger geographical level?

That is helpful.

Thank you for what you have said so far and the information that you have provided, cabinet secretary. I have some questions about employability and skills. Will you give us an update on how the youth guarantee is going? How successful has it has been, particularly in reaching young people who have been dramatically impacted by the pandemic? How can we ensure that we continue to support young people, not only through the pandemic, but beyond it?

Thank you—that is helpful.

I will move on to a linked issue. I might have missed this, but one of the—perhaps many—gaps in the bill is that there does not seem to be any way of dealing with disputes. There is no investor and state dispute settlement equivalent or other interregional mechanism. Does Steve Fothergill have anything to say on that? How can we draw in voices to ensure that we get dispute mechanisms and a way of dealing with technical and strategic issues?

Thank you very much for that. I will leave it there, convener.

Good morning, and thank you for joining us. I will follow up the theme of consultation and explore a little bit more from your different perspectives not only what needs to be consulted on but who the key players should be. The Scottish Government has a clear interest; so, too, do local authorities. I want to bring in Steven Heddle, who said earlier that he wanted to respond to that point. In one of your earlier comments, you talked about co-production of the rules and guidelines. Can you unpick that a little bit and maybe give us a better understanding of exactly who the co-producing players should be? What must we do to ensure that rules and guidance are as clear as possible?