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Seòmar agus comataidhean

Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 2 April 2025
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Displaying 1482 contributions

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Finance and Public Administration Committee

Economic and Fiscal Forecasts and Medium-term Financial Strategy

Meeting date: 6 June 2023

Michelle Thomson

So any cut in the block grant has a potentially significant impact.

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Economic and Fiscal Forecasts and Medium-term Financial Strategy

Meeting date: 6 June 2023

Michelle Thomson

Is that approach even more prevalent in Scotland due to the tendency to focus on revenue because of the fixed budget?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Public Service Reform Programme

Meeting date: 30 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

I want to go back to cover one idea with David Page before we move on to look at some general themes.

Mr Page, you did not mention one area that is habitually difficult when making transformational change at scale: the merging of different cultures. People often carry out due diligence on legal or financial matters but forget about culture. You were, in essence, bringing lots of different cultures together. How did you actively manage that and what have been the outcomes?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Public Service Reform Programme

Meeting date: 30 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

I have a final wee question off the back of that. You pointed out that change was forced on you by the legislation. Had it not been, is there any way on God’s earth that all the different forces would have volunteered to come together?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Public Service Reform Programme

Meeting date: 30 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

It is just a quick question, because Keith Brown has opened up a great thread. We hear that there is a lot of good stuff going on, and a shared sense of what needs to be done. However, I want somebody to answer this question. What is the role of Government in enabling data harvest and capture—within limitations, as has been set out—given that AI will be fundamental to public sector reform? What should Government’s role be, given the challenges around scale that Keith Brown pointed out in his opening question?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Consumer Scotland

Meeting date: 24 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

I apologise, Sue. That is why I was wondering why you were passing that question to David Eiser.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Consumer Scotland

Meeting date: 24 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

Good morning. What do you think is the first thing that I noticed about you when you first came into the room this morning?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Consumer Scotland

Meeting date: 24 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

Yes, you are all men. Off the back of that, I thought that I would just check how representative the organisation is. We can see that 20 per cent of the people here today are women—Susan Bomphray is online and has not had a chance to speak yet. I looked at the board, and I see that there is 25 per cent representation by women. Then I looked at the membership of the committees and saw that the risk and audit committee, which is the most active one, is 70 per cent men. Then I searched your strategy for the terms “sex”, “gender”, “women” and so on, and there was no mention of them. I also looked at your work plan, which has three mentions in passing. So my question is: are you completely or just mostly gender blind?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Consumer Scotland

Meeting date: 24 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

I thought that you were director of policy, Susan. I see that your title on screen is “director of policy”.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Consumer Scotland

Meeting date: 24 May 2023

Michelle Thomson

There is certainly much further to go.

Before I move on to my main area of questioning, I want to ask about your research—David Eiser may be able to come in on this. What consideration have you given thus far to how specifically your research in whatever area you are focusing on will make sure that it pulls in the unique insights of women? I take it that you are routinely disaggregating your data set by gender. I see nodding; it is heartening to know that you are doing that as a matter of routine.

I have a few questions about how your approach differs for small businesses, to which, I know, you offer a service. In some respects, the issues that are experienced by small business owners are similar to those experienced by other consumers. We have already touched on some of those today. What is more interesting is where small business owners are considered to be equal to large organisations but do not have the same power. I am thinking of issues to do with commercial contracts in financial banking, where a microbusiness is considered in law to have the same weight as NatWest. What are the similarities in the service that you offer to small businesses, and where are some of the advocacy differences?