Chamber and committees

Thank you. I dare say that we will see what is in the budget in due course.

Again, on budget-related issues—the convener touched on this in her questioning—the committee has received a lot of evidence on the tax differential. We heard about that when we went to Prestwick airport in the spring, and witnesses have talked to the committee about a Scottish premium that they must pay to workers to offset the higher taxes that are paid here. If what is in the newspapers is to be believed, the policy chairman of the City of London Corporation will speak to the First Minister today and will raise some of those issues. Would you accept that a further widening of the income tax differential would be counterproductive when it comes to the pursuit of economic growth?

I am glad that you mentioned the migration figures, because I had a detailed look at them this morning. You are absolutely right: in the year to the middle of 2023, the Scottish population increased by 0.8 per cent, based entirely on inward migration. For the same period, the population of the UK as a whole increased by 1 per cent, so Scotland lags behind the overall UK growth by 20 per cent. In your view, why is the Scottish population growing less fast than that of the UK as a whole?

Thank you, convener. I do not know whether we have access to that data.

I am conscious of time, but I would like to ask another question. When you gave evidence to the committee in May, I asked you about the new deal for business and how it was progressing. At that point, you said that you were constrained in what you could say about it, because of the purdah rules. Can you give us an update on the status of the implementation of the 78 recommendations in the new deal for business?

Is there any reason why Scotland performs worse than other countries?

Good morning. I want to ask about skills, because I was very interested to see that, in your comparison, Scotland came last out of eight comparator countries in skills underutilisation. I take it that you are talking about people being overqualified for the job that they are doing. You would expect in such a tight labour market to see a maximisation of skills, but we are not seeing that. Can you explain a little bit why that situation is arising?

Thank you.

Thank you. I will change tack a little bit and ask you about a different subject. You have both referenced your hospitality inquiry, many of the recommendations in which involve voluntary action by employers. We have seen some regulation changes, and a law that has been introduced by the previous UK Government on passing on tips came into effect yesterday. There is precedent for Government bringing in legislation in this area. Much of what you are saying is about voluntary action by employers. How confident are you that employers will take up those recommendations, as opposed relying on further regulation?

Thank you, convener, and good morning, gentlemen. I will ask about financial performance. My first question is for SNIB, following Lorna Slater’s earlier questions. SNIB was established to be a perpetual institution with its profits reinvested. Last year, when SNIB chair Willie Watt gave evidence to the committee, our colleague Michelle Thomson asked Mr Watt about that. At that point, he said:

“Government accounting rules are not helpful in that regard, but we are talking to the Scottish Government about those issues.”—[Official Report, Economy and Fair Work Committee, 21 June 2023; c 23.]

Could you give us any update on that challenge and on whether it is proving to be easier to reinvest profits or whether there is still a barrier to that?

Thank you. I have a couple of other questions on financial performance, the first of which is for SNIB. You will be aware that the issue of bankers’ bonuses is politically contentious. I am aware that the SNIB pays such bonuses. There is a long-term incentive plan that sets out the performance conditions that relate to them. What are the performance measures that determine whether bonuses are paid?

Ultimately, do the Scottish ministers sign this off?