Chamber and committees

Of course, the bill just talks about consulting the Scottish ministers and not about seeking consent. That might be an issue that you will want to take further, convener. However, I am conscious of the time, so I will hand back to you.

How will you approach monitoring the Scottish Government’s implementation of international obligations and its use of the keeping pace power? What do you see as the key risks to your ability to do that?

What does Environmental Standards Scotland see its relationship with this committee as being? What would you like it to be? How can we work well together to make sure that the key issues that affect Scotland’s environmental standards are addressed? What would an ideal relationship with the committee look like for you?

There is an interplay between this LCM and the one that we have been considering on the Procurement Bill. My colleagues might not want to dwell on the politics of this, but the issue is that, as far as Scottish suppliers are concerned, there is not much gain and, indeed, there is potential vulnerability from this agreement. The issue is about procurement. In a practical sense, the UK Government is clearly responsible for the trade agreements, but the broad powers set out in the Procurement Bill might, in trying to make sure that the trade agreement goes through, undermine Scottish suppliers in comparison with, for example, their New Zealand counterparts. If, under the Procurement Bill, broad procurement powers are given to the UK Government with regard to, say, schools accessing lamb for school meals, that might undermine what we might want to do in Scotland to ensure that local authorities can access and procure local produce to help with sustainability.

I am just trying to make the implications more real. Nobody is disputing the UK Government’s right to do these trade agreements; indeed, it might want to add subsequent ones into the legislation. The issue, primarily, is the interplay with the broad powers of the procurement legislation. Am I correct in my understanding of that? If I am incorrect in thinking that the procurement of Scottish produce for Scottish schools might be undermined by the procurement legislation, please correct me.

You have just asked my question, convener.

If it reassures you, the fact that the Economy and Fair Work Committee is focusing on tourism for a second time perhaps reflects our understanding that it is a national industry that is one of the few that reaches all parts of Scotland.

What amendments do you want to see to enable the LCM to be consented to? What changes would you need to see to the bill for you to be able to bring forward an LCM for consent, particularly in relation to cross-border arrangements?

Do we know what the volume is of UK reserved bodies’ procurement in Scotland?

That would be interesting to know, if you have that information to share with the committee. I am aware that it is not specific to the area.

On the importance of procurement post EU exit, it has been recognised by everybody that there had to be legislation put in place. In January 2022, the UK and devolved Governments published the common framework on procurement, which this committee recognised was a practical and commonsense way forward. However, the Scottish Government notes in its LCM that it has not been able to fully address its concerns with the Procurement Bill. How has the common framework been operating in practice? Everybody was looking to that as being the practical means by which there could be that sensible, commonsense co-operation.