Chamber and committees

Yes, well, we will probably get to those. I am sure that people will draw their own conclusions from your answers.

Can I take you to the key messages in the briefing that is before us? Key message 3 talks about political leadership and the gap in political leadership. In particular, the Government said in, I think, 2022 that it was going to establish an economic leadership group chaired by the First Minister, but that has yet to meet. Could you explain that for us, please?

There is a possibility there will be no leadership group in the future. In practice, there has not really been one in the past either, has there?

There was a strategy that was launched in 2015.

There is one final thing from me before I pass over to the deputy convener. You will see that, in exhibit 1 of the Auditor General’s briefing, he gives examples of NSET actions, which are lifted directly from the Government’s strategy. It includes action 6:

“Create a national system of pre-scaler hubs that will stimulate the very earliest stages of high growth commercial and social entrepreneurship.”

Action 15 states:

“Build strategic partnerships with other key entrepreneurial ecosystems in other countries.”

What does that mean?

Sorry, did you say earlier on in your answer that this was an issue about co-ordinating diaries?

We will get on to duplication later on. The leadership group has not met, even though it was a central part of the strategy for economic transformation. Can you remind me again who is on or who is supposed to be on the economic leadership group?

I invite Colin Beattie to put some questions.

But that is a bit different from a conventional regional policy that might identify Edinburgh as overheating and other parts of the Scottish economy as lagging badly behind, with higher rates of unemployment and worklessness and lower levels of economic activity. Does the Scottish Government take a position on that, or does it not really have that in its sights?

Okay. I will move things along, because we are against the clock a little. I invite Graham Simpson to put some questions to you.

Just taking up your last point about the work of Audit Scotland really mattering, do you accept the conclusions and recommendations in the Auditor General’s briefing?