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Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
I still do not understand why the assessments were not done at the time.
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
Good morning, minister. Thank you for attending the meeting this morning.
I want to ask about ScotWind. In her original statement, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government said that the intention was to draw down £460 million from ScotWind. That came under some criticism by many people, not least of all me. However, as the convener has already pointed out, luckily, it now looks as though matters have changed, due to your excellent internal planning assumption. More important, we will not have a final update until the spring budget revision. What assessment have you made of the behavioural impacts on investment as a result of continued uncertainty about whether the ScotWind money will be used for revenue spending or to genuinely support future growth?
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
I am looking at the general principle, because the information that we have is quite opaque, because we have moneys coming into certain areas. I am looking at the general principle, as that appears to be what has happened.
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
That was my working assumption, so I was surprised to see the transfer from net zero and energy to enterprise, trade and investment. It is good that that money is going to offshore energy, because that adds investment, but, given that both growing the economy and tackling the climate emergency are Scottish Government priorities, what was the thinking behind swapping the money from one priority area to another? There were net funding changes of £19.6 million from net zero and energy to enterprise.
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
We are all grateful for the changes that have been made thus far, at the behest of the committee, to provide greater transparency. Regarding your role and the good work that, I understand, you are doing to seek to make savings from a public administration point of view, have you had any thoughts about how that can be transparently demonstrated? I know that that does not relate to our discussion today, but it would relate to future budgets.
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
If they were done, why were they not published?
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
Yes. Obviously, what the public sector does can be used to crowd in private sector investment, but we keep having different statements. As has already been pointed out, perhaps you got lucky with your excellent internal planning, but we will not have a final understanding until the spring budget revision. People from the outside are looking in and hearing Scottish Government statements of intent about the money. What assessment have you made of how that will affect your ability to crowd in private sector investment?
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
The Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government noted in her statement on 3 September that impact assessments would be carried out. However, they were not published until 3 October. Impact assessments, including equality impact assessments, should be done before that, so what was the rationale for the delay and for the assessments not being published until a month later?
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
There were net funding changes of £19.6 million. That money was moved from net zero and energy.
Finance and Public Administration Committee
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Michelle Thomson
I accept what you have said about the remaining uncertainties and your intention. When do you anticipate that you or the finance secretary will be able to be unequivocal about that money reverting to its original intention, which related to net zero funding and growing the wider supply chain in that regard? That included a variety of things.