Chamber and committees

I do not think that that necessarily has to be the case. I have tried to provide a financial settlement that allows organisations to adapt to a much more pressured financial environment and to adjust their way of working to enable that to be the case.

I do not think so. All SNIB investments have to be made on a commercial basis. The bank is able to make judgments on the ventures that merit its support and investment. It has successfully developed a strong view on the role that it can perform in being an enabler of other investment. When the bank is able to invest in a particular proposition, that gives rise to potential investment from other parties, a consequence of which is that ventures are better supported.

I do not think that the bank operates under any particular constraints on its being able to fulfil the remit that the Government has set for it, but the bank is on a journey to develop its financial strength and reputation, and the steps that have been taken are encouraging.

The Scottish National Investment Bank looks at propositions that are designed to create economic and employment benefits within Scotland as a consequence of their activities. They might not be uniquely concentrated in Scotland, because companies operate in a far wider context. I highlighted the £50 million investment in North Star. I suspect that not all of that money will be spent uniquely in Scotland, because of the nature of that company’s activities.

I assure the committee that we expect the Scottish National Investment Bank to assess the business case for an investment and what the returns are likely to be, because there must be a return.

However, there is, on my part, an acceptance—which I would prefer was not the case, but I have to live in the real world—that some investments might not be successful. That has always been part and parcel of the issues that we have wrestled with in relation to Scottish Enterprise. Some of the investments that it makes do fantastically well, but others do not do so well. We have to look at things in the round. I remember an early conversation that I had, when I became a minister many years ago, with the leader of Scottish Enterprise, who wanted to go through some of the challenges with me so that I would be aware that I might have to defend investment that was not successful. I accept that; the quid pro quo is that other investments must be successful, to balance that out.

That option is available to me, but it is very much conditional on the wider pressures on the public finances and the programmes that we would be expected to fund and support. Financial transactions are really quite appropriate as a mechanism for securing investment in the Scottish National Investment Bank. The nature of the repayment that is required for financial transactions leads them to be appropriate in relation to issues that Mr Simpson raised with me about the need for recognition of the importance of getting a return. The mechanism is appropriate at this time, but there is a wider agenda about the regulatory strength of the Scottish National Investment Bank. It is pursuing steps in developing the critical foundations for the bank to take forward its investment activities.

I cannot quite think what the date was, but it would have been in the autumn.

I will take that point away. I accept the point that Mr Simpson is making, and I think that there should be transparency over these questions. If there are any issues that need to be addressed there, I will address them.

Ellis Watson is providing specific advice to the First Minister to enable the Government’s engagement with the business community. It is a slightly different type of role from the one that Mark Logan is undertaking; it is essentially about ensuring that the Government is able to hear and engage with the wider business community, communicating directly with the First Minister by using the skills of Ellis Watson.

My answer to the last part of Michelle Thomson’s question is yes. We should have bold ambitions here. We are not realising the potential of the Scottish economy and Scottish society because we have such a difference in the levels of participation in entrepreneurship between women and men. We have to confront that issue. That is why we commissioned Ana Stewart to undertake an independent review of that question. From that will flow the specific interventions that we will have to undertake to address the ambitions that Michelle Thomson puts to me. I want to ensure that the steps that we take in response to Ana Stewart’s review are commensurate with realising those ambitions.

I am sure that you will. I recognise the significance of the question and ministers should come back to the committee to explain in greater detail where we are heading as a consequence of that activity.

I absolutely recognise how tough things are out there. I hear that in my constituency caseload and also engage much more widely with the economy, so I, of course, recognise that. I have tried to address the issues that are put to me by a number of organisations. As I said earlier, 16 business organisations asked me to freeze the business rates poundage, and I have done that, but that does not come without a cost. It is estimated to be a saving to taxpayers of about £308 million. About half of all retail hospitality and leisure businesses will be eligible for 100 per cent small business bonus relief, so a very big part of that sector will be relieved of that pressure.

Obviously, we rely on the UK Government to come forward on some of the issues that are forcing the increase in costs for business, and energy costs are probably the biggest factor of change in businesses’ cost base. I hope that the successor scheme that will take effect in March is able to support businesses to the extent that they need. I would point out that, in a tough budget settlement, all of the agencies are actually seeing modest increases in the resources that are available to them.

In short, I feel as if I have done as much as I can within the resources that are available to me to help those sectors out, but I appreciate that they face tough times.