Seòmar agus comataidhean

Thank you very much, cabinet secretary.

We will move on to questions. I intend to invite questions on part 1 of the bill first. We will then move on to parts 2 and 3 in turn.

I will begin with a general question on part 1, which proposes the establishment of a victims commissioner. We have heard mixed views on that proposal. Some witnesses are clearly very supportive of it, but others have raised concerns about, for example, whether that is the best use of limited resources, whether we need another commissioner, and a possible conflict with the role of the Lord Advocate. I ask the cabinet secretary for her reflections on some of the concerns that have been raised.

We are conscious of time. I do not know whether you want to move on, convener.

Good morning to our panel members. It is nice that you have been able to join us. I am interested in exploring a little the importance of domestic policy in Scotland, for example, and how important that is for sub-states such as yours when it comes to scoping investment opportunities for businesses.

I will give you an example. I am an MSP in the north-east of Scotland, which has an opportunity to shift from oil and gas production to renewables production. There can be some challenges in and around, for example, planning and consenting policy in Scotland, and, with particular reference to timescales, that may have an impact on the attractiveness of Scotland for international partners to come and invest here. That is just one example, but I am interested more broadly in how domestic policy is scoped or considered when our global colleagues, including those in Europe, may be looking to develop in Scotland.

Okay. Professor Paquin, do you want to add anything to that?

Thanks very much for those comprehensive responses. I will ask a brief follow-up question that comes back to my original question about domestic policy. In the context of not only planning and consenting—the example that I gave—but trade and investment, do you agree that, when developing policy, it is important that it has an international trade compatibility or compliance element? I will start with Professor Cornago and then bring in Professor Paquin.

I will bring in Mr O’Donnell.

I have two more members wishing to come in, so I ask for fairly succinct responses to questions.

I am pleased to welcome our second panel of witnesses this morning for our final evidence session on pre-budget scrutiny. I welcome Angela Constance, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs; Catriona Dalrymple, interim director of justice with the Scottish Government; and Donald McGillivray, director of safer communities with the Scottish Government.

I will allow around 90 minutes for this session, and my intention is to broadly cover the following areas in turn. We will start with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and then move to community justice. After that, we will cover policing, courts and prosecution services, prisons and then any other parts of the justice sector that members may wish to ask questions on. We have a lot of ground to cover so, as usual, I ask members to keep questions as succinct as possible. If we do not manage to get through all the questions, we can send the remainder in writing seeking a response.

I will start with a general opening question and will then open up to members for anything similar before I move on to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Cabinet secretary, it will be of no surprise that virtually every organisation that we have heard from has painted a stark picture of their finances, with capital budgets being under significant pressure. All have said that their finances are insufficient, and many have said that they have cut as far as they can. What is the possibility for a change that might address that situation? Have you had any discussions so far with the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance on the scope for further investment, particularly on a spend-to-save basis?

I will go straight to other members for their questions. As nobody is looking to ask a general opening question, we will move to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

The question is, that motion S6M-10547, in the name of Angela Constance, be agreed. Are we agreed?

Members: No.