Chamber and committees

Good morning, and a warm welcome to the 18th meeting in 2023 of the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee.

Item 1 is a decision on taking business in private. Are members content to take item 4 in private?

Members indicated agreement.

Apologies for the delay, which was due to technical issues. I believe that the cabinet secretary will now appear in audio-only format. Cabinet secretary, we missed most of the answer to the previous question. Did you want to say anything more?

I remember taking evidence, early doors, on the possibility of raising the minimum unit price in line with inflation and there being concern that, although it was before Brexit legislation, the internal market act might open it up to legal challenge. Do you have any thoughts on that?

Welcome back to the committee again, cabinet secretary. We lost you briefly. Do you want to continue with your answer to Mr Ruskell’s question?

I have a quick final question, cabinet secretary. The committee undertook significant work on the original REUL bill, and one of our major concerns was about its impact on other organisations, such as animal welfare organisations, that are trying to navigate their way through it. We were also concerned about Scottish Parliament subject committees, which will also be interested in what is happening and want to engage with the process. Although I note that you said that the removal of the sunset clause is a move in the right direction, do the timescales and the approach alleviate any of the pressures on business and third sector organisations, and do they affect the ability of the Scottish Parliament to engage in the scrutiny process?

I thank the cabinet secretary and his officials for attending. We now move into private session.

Mr Macfarlane? I beg your pardon—I mean Mr McLaren.

Mr McLaren, do you want to come in on that point?

To drill down into that a little, when you talk about raising awareness, do you mean among local government elected members, local government officers or communities in general, and the people who might be feeding into LPPs to develop them?

Thank you. We move to questions from committee members. I will start with Mr Cameron, who joins us online and who, unfortunately, has to leave the committee fairly early.