Chamber and committees

Can I just check the facts, for completeness? I understand that resources are an issue, convener, as is providing detailed feedback for everyone. However, a sample exercise could quite easily be done on, say, 50 or 100 unsuccessful bidders—I apologise; I do not know what an appropriate number would be—over a period of time in order to find out whether they reapply. Some kind of data analysis could be done. What I was asking is whether that has been considered. If not, would it be considered?

I find that encouraging. I am not part of these deliberations, but I would just say that, as the committee concludes this particular post-legislative scrutiny, I am sensing a frustration that, in the committees that I sit on, we are always thinking about what is next, rather than the good work that has taken place up to this date. However, that is just what politicians do.

You have mentioned burdens on businesses. I get that, but we also have to think about what the right thing to do is and to support businesses in doing it, instead of using terms such as “burdens on businesses”. If we are to have a proper partnership across portfolios, we have to enable businesses to see the value in doing the right thing, instead of our talking about it in terms of burdens. Maybe the language has to be changed a little bit.

I have another question. We know that public bodies report annually on all this, and we know that there are strategies, but the committee has heard that, quite often, there is an inconsistency in the way in which the aims contained in those reports and strategies are linked to outcomes in reality. I did not know—though I do now—that there was an annual synthesis report that pulls together some of that stuff. Does the minister recognise those inconsistencies? What efforts have been made to address them?

Is my point about aims in strategies and reports not necessarily being linked to actual outcomes something that the Government is aware of? The committee will want to know whether that is a systemic or an anecdotal thing. How real is it?

I am sure that the committee would welcome further details of that in writing. I do not want to take up more of the committee’s time with this line of questioning, but there is a tension between there being a definition and there being flexibility and the definition being interpreted differently by public bodies. I do not want to make something of something that is not there, so some clarity through correspondence might be quite helpful.

I will do so very briefly, if that is okay, convener.

Previously, I was a substitute on the committee when a similar line of questioning was being posed to other witnesses. Could we get confirmation that all bidders are definitely entitled to receive feedback, not just for bids that are of more than a certain value? That is my first question, but I will roll them together for brevity, if that is helpful.

Secondly, I remember asking at a previous committee meeting whether any monitoring of unsuccessful bidders is done and whether a lack of feedback on their lack of success deters them from making future applications. My understanding is that no monitoring has been done on that. Is Government aware of that, or will it consider analysing the information in order to see whether more needs to be done? An unsuccessful bidder can still build the expertise to allow them to bid successfully in the future.

We have heard a lot today about transparency in supply chains and understanding the ethical decisions that must be taken in relation to payment of the living wage, fair trade and a variety of other things.

The legislation that we are scrutinising was passed in 2014, but I want to highlight the Circular Economy (Scotland) Bill, which is going through the Parliament at the moment. As someone who sits on the committee that is considering the bill, I think that we need to ensure that all public sector procurement decisions play their part in relation to a circular economy. A circular economy strategy for Scotland will be developed following the passage of the bill, which, I hope, will have a beneficial impact on procurement for all public bodies, including local authorities, NHS Scotland and Police Scotland.

Minister, how cognisant are you of that bill? Is work being done across portfolios? For example, is Lorna Slater, who is leading on the bill, talking to your department to ensure that the public sector and—this is the key point—people in the supply chains know what they need to do to play their part in ensuring that Scotland has a truly circular economy?

Ms Archer, I do not want to be a hypocrite. The first time that a local business contacts me to say that there are too many burdens on it, I will be making representations to Government.

That is a fair point.

I should ask my final question, as it is in my notes. One inconsistency that has been identified is reporting on fair trade products. Because there is no agreed definition in that respect, consistent reporting or looking at trends becomes very difficult. Is there a need for a clear definition? Is the minister aware of that? Is work being done on it?

All that was helpful, but there was a really helpful point in your response. You started off by mentioning something that it is challenging for politicians to fund and achieve. How can we significantly improve bus services and make them more affordable? Work is under way in that area, but I will not go off on a tangent.

You then gave the specific example of the school run. We cannot fix everything at once, but we can work in specific areas to make a real and meaningful difference. I found that concrete example really helpful. Can the other participants share with us other concrete examples of how the Scottish Government or local authorities can support communities in relation to the action gap?