Chamber and committees

I should also say that we previously agreed to take agenda item 4 in private.

Our next item of business is an evidence session with the Scottish tourism and hospitality bodies, following publication of the Scottish Government’s draft budget in December 2023. I welcome Marc Crothall, chief executive, Scottish Tourism Alliance; Leon Thompson, executive director, UKHospitality Scotland; and Colin Wilkinson, managing director, Scottish Licensed Trade Association. Thank you all for attending this morning, and for the briefings that we received in advance.

I will start with some questions. I know that you have criticisms of the budget, but you also point to positive reports from the sector. We have seen growth in the sector’s economic value, and you recognise that there has been an increase in visitor numbers, particularly international visitors. With that, we are seeing an increase in the economic contribution of the sector. If you can point to the positive growth and recovery in the sector, why is there so much concern about the budget, and why are the calls for Government support so strong?

There will be a chance this morning to cover all the areas that you have raised, so please do not feel the need to explain everything in your first answer. Leon Thompson, I will bring you in first to talk about what seems to be a contradiction. If you can point to figures that show that the sector is doing well and that there is buoyancy, why is there such a need for Government support?

When the committee did an inquiry on town centres last year, or maybe the year before, we found that one of the solutions was the need for town centres to have a mixed economy, and tourism and hospitality are key players in that. It cannot all be about retail—what we need is a changed economy. Does the picture that you have described make that harder to achieve? At that time of the inquiry, we were looking at how we might change the use of a property to allow a hospitality business to move in, but now we see those businesses closing. They are creating empty spaces as much as retail is.

I am sorry, but we need to move on.

Good morning, and welcome to the second meeting in 2024 of the Economy and Fair Work Committee. I welcome Ash Regan MSP, who is joining us for the evidence session.

Our first item of business is to decide whether to take items 3, 4 and 5 in private. Are members content to do so?

Members indicated agreement.

It was previously agreed that we would take item 6 in private.

I will allow Ash Regan one supplementary question before I move to Brian Whittle.

Can we make sure that the minister can hear me? We can hear the minister. It might be helpful if I speak to see whether he can hear us. Can you hear me, minister? We asked the minister to make an opening statement, but I assume that he still cannot hear us. Shall we briefly suspend the meeting while we resolve the issue?

Thank you.

I will briefly recap, minister. Thank you for joining us this morning. You may be aware that, in the summer, we carried out a short inquiry into Grangemouth. At the time, we were not made aware of the plans that have recently been announced. We have heard from Ineos, Petroineos and the Scottish Government. We are pleased that you are joining us this morning. I invite you to make a short opening statement.

What discussions have you had recently with the Scottish Government about a just transition for Grangemouth? At the start, you said that the measure was part of a move towards changing our energy needs and that it was part of a just transition. However, the committee’s concern is that the announcement appeared to be quite sudden and that the timescales that were initially reported were quite short. There are concerns that that will have a negative impact on the local community, and particularly on the supply chain.