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There are UK bills that give UK ministers delegated powers that they can use without reference to the Scottish ministers or that fall outwith the scope of SI protocol 2. There are a couple of issues on which I would be very interested to hear the minister’s views. How might the Scottish Parliament scrutinise proposals by UK ministers to exercise those powers, as well as the Scottish ministers’ position on those proposals?

I am not asking you to copy and paste anything, but I am—

I am actually looking for a ruler against which you can measure a bill and its provisions that allow UK ministers to exercise legal rights in devolved areas.

Right. Can I come back to my question? Your answer comes from a Government perspective, but you are the Minister for Parliamentary Business, and I was asking how the Scottish Parliament might scrutinise these things. Do you have a view on that? How might we scrutinise UK ministers’ proposals to exercise powers conferred on them by UK bills that have had the consent of the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament?

It actually happens more often than you might credit.

I do not have any relevant interests to declare.

I understand what you are saying about the use of the word “laptop”, but I am not sure that I follow the logic of what you say about amendment 119 not taking into account the means by which the devices are distributed to children in the first place. You have made a commitment to the pupils of Scotland that they will have devices, Deputy First Minister. Irrespective of the route of distribution for the devices or the internet connections, that is a Scottish Government commitment. I have spoken in the chamber before about it and asked the First Minister questions about it. Will you explain the logic behind your objection?

I am not hung up on a particular set of words; I am hung up on the idea that something has to be done to assure ministers that, when they make such drastic decisions, the provision exists for every child to access education and learning remotely. I know that John Mason shares my passion and commitment to ensuring that that happens.

There is great virtue in underscoring that commitment, which I hope we all share, by including it in the bill. I refer members again to the words of the Deputy First Minister when he talked about

“the barriers to education that too many children face”.

Those barriers became higher and larger—they grew in every dimension—during the pandemic. If the bill is to fulfil its purpose, as ministers have repeatedly stated, I hope that the Government will accept amendment 119. It seeks to ensure that, when schools are to be shut down for good reason, no child is left behind, and no young person’s educational pathway will be disrupted even more than it would be as a result of the closure of a school.

It aims to ensure that children and young people will not be denied access to learning, education or teachers—to some kind of educational experience—nor will they be denied, to quote John Swinney,

“access to the rich educational resources of the internet”.

We should all aspire to that for every child in Scotland, which is why I am passionate in moving amendment 119.

I am grateful to be here to speak to amendment 119, which seeks to ensure that, before making regulations to close schools, the Scottish ministers ensure that every child and young person is provided with a laptop and an internet connection. The committee and the cabinet secretary will not be surprised to hear that, in principle, I oppose the bill but, given that it is likely to become law, it is important that we try to improve it as much as possible. I am particularly passionate about the issue and therefore I seek to improve the bill in a way that will narrow the attainment gap, which we know is growing, and ensure that no child in Scotland, especially from the poorest families, is left behind in any way.

Until a couple of weeks ago, I was the convener of the Education, Children and Young People Committee, which heard evidence on the bill. Remote learning, which my colleague Oliver Mundell has mentioned, was one of the issues that were touched on in that evidence. The committee asked the cabinet secretary for specific assurances in relation to the provision of laptops and internet connection, particularly in circumstances in which the Government is making a decision to close schools.

It is a Scottish National Party election commitment to provide young people with devices and internet connections. The cabinet secretary may be surprised to hear me say this, but I am genuinely trying to be helpful in lodging the amendment, which brings to the fore the fulfilment of that SNP promise. I hope to be able to appeal to the Government, and to the Deputy First Minister in particular, by using his own words. Just over a year ago, John Swinney said:

“We will end the digital divide between those who have access to the rich educational resources of the internet and open that electronic world to every child in Scotland ... we are determined to tear down the barriers to education that too many children face.”

I agree with all that.

We can indeed.