Seòmar agus comataidhean

Thanks, Paul and Alison, for your contributions today. We very much appreciate them. Next week, we will hear from another panel of witnesses on the budget.

That concludes our public business for today, and we will now move into private session to consider the other items on our agenda.

Welcome back. Our next item is a pre-budget scrutiny evidence session.

Last week, we discussed budget priorities in general terms and explored the context for decision making with regard to the Scottish budget. Today, we will focus on more specific budget priorities that are covered by our remit and consider what a wellbeing economy would mean for those areas.

I welcome to the meeting our panel: Paul Bradley, policy and public affairs manager at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, and Alison Davis, business manager at Saheliya. Thank you for joining us. I invite members to ask questions, starting with Bob Doris.

Thank you very much. That was very helpful.

Agenda item 4 is the formal consideration of motion S6M-10324, which calls on the committee to recommend approval of the Carer’s Assistance (Carer Support Payment) (Scotland) Regulations 2023. I invite the cabinet secretary to speak and to move the motion.

Motion moved,

That the Social Justice and Social Security Committee recommends that the Carer’s Assistance (Carer Support Payment) (Scotland) Regulations 2023 [draft] be approved.—[Shirley-Anne Somerville]

The committee will report on the outcome of the instrument in due course. I invite the committee to delegate authority to me, as convener, to approve a draft of the report for publication. Are members agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

I hear you. Thanks, Alison. Does Paul want to come in on that question?

Before we finish, Bob Doris has a question. Could you make it a quick one, Mr Doris?

If it is very quick.

Our next item of business is consideration of a Scottish statutory instrument: the Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Amendment (No 2) Regulations 2023. The instrument is subject to negative procedure and amends the Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Regulations 2021 to increase the maximum amount that may be disregarded in respect of childcare costs for the recipients of universal credit when calculating their income for the purposes of the council tax reduction scheme.

It is an emergency instrument that came into force in June and it coincides with an increase in the childcare cost caps by the United Kingdom Government. No motions to annul have been laid. The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee considered the instrument on 5 September and agreed to draw it to the attention of the Parliament on a reporting ground for failure to comply with laying requirements. The committee also noted that it was content with the explanation that the Scottish Government had provided for the breach of the laying requirements.

Do members have any comments?

No other members have comments. Bob Doris’s comments will be noted in the Official Report.

I invite the committee to agree that it does not wish to make any further recommendation in relation to the instrument. Are members content just to note the instrument?

Members indicated agreement.

The next item of business is consideration of another statutory instrument: the Carer’s Assistance (Carer Support Payment) (Scotland) Regulations 2023. The instrument is laid under the affirmative procedure, which means that the Parliament must approve it before it comes into force.

At our previous committee meeting, we took evidence from Minority Ethnic Carers of People Project, Carers Scotland and Carers Trust Scotland on behalf of the Scottish young carers services alliance. We also heard from the Scottish Commission on Social Security.

Today, I welcome Shirley-Anne Somerville, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice. I also welcome her officials Euan Geddes, policy official, carers allowance case transfer; Ross Grimley, lawyer, Scottish Government legal directorate; and Jane Sterry, policy lead for the carer support payment.

I will mention a few points about the format of the meeting before we start.

We do not, in fact, have any members online, so we can forget about that. We normally do.

We will move on. I invite the cabinet secretary to make an opening statement.