Chamber and committees

I am very grateful to you all.

That is very helpful—thank you.

Did Parliament get that right?

I am very grateful for that answer.

I will direct my final question to DCC Connors—but you can of course come in, chief constable, if you wish.

DCC Connors, last year the Scottish Police Federation told the committee that any cuts to numbers would “have consequences” and that public safety could be “compromised.” The federation went on to say:

“The police service cannot cope with any further reduction of officer numbers”.

If numbers were to drop in certain situations—as your written submission suggests could happen—what impact would that have on the force’s ability to provide the services that it does?

Good morning, convener. I have an interest to declare, which I shall specifically flag up at each session where it is relevant, because it will not always be relevant. I remind the committee that I am a practising solicitor and that I hold practising certificates with the Law Society of England and Wales and with the Law Society of Scotland.

Good morning. On the rebranding point, which George Adam made well, I note that Fiona Robertson of the SQA told the committee that the bill creates a new organisation that has the same functions, not only in broad terms, but in quite specific terms, as the existing organisation. If it will be the same organisation with a new name, but with the same people and the same specific functions, how can you, as cabinet secretary, be sure that the issues that arose will not happen again, and that the trust that you demand will be earned and maintained? How will it be monitored?

Finally, the financial memorandum sets out the costs of the reforms, but it focuses on the obvious structural costs and concludes that they will fundamentally be “similar”. If it is accepted that the activity cost is fundamentally the same before and after reform, does that not bring us back to the point that I made at the start of this evidence session? We will have the same organisations with the same costs and, therefore, the same outcomes.

Indeed.

You mentioned that changes to qualifications could happen. Do you have any concern that doing what the bill does in isolation from, or at least separate from, the other reforms that have been recommended—the Withers reform, the Hayward reform and the Muir reform—risks the reform being piecemeal and siloed, rather than holistic across the sector?

Do you want to add anything, cabinet secretary?