Seòmar agus comataidhean

We need to move on; we are about halfway through.

You mentioned that the agreement does not provide mechanisms for choices. Could you illuminate a little what might need to be there?

Donna, you spoke really well and inspirationally about the changes and the new deal in Wigan. What scrutiny of the agreement do we need to take on?

That is brilliant. I love that idea. We need to learn how to collaborate better. There are a lot of skill sets around that that need to be expanded and opened up. That is a great suggestion. I am not quite sure who would be involved with the Parliament, but that is certainly something to take forward. We are certainly getting a lot from you. Earlier, all of you commented that you are not bringing up a debate in this conversation, but I have found this session to be extraordinarily constructive in getting ideas and suggestions about things that we need to look at and take further as a committee.

Stephanie Callaghan has the last question.

I asked this question last week, too, but it would be interesting to hear Jennie Macdiarmid’s perspective on it. You have mentioned the cost of living crisis and people’s ability to access nutritious food, but what are your thoughts on the Scottish Government’s having powers to subsidise not just the production side but the sale price of certain foods such as fruit and veg in order to support more people to afford healthy and sustainable food?

With regard to food systems, have you done any work on how the Government could subsidise customers through the sale price, ensuring that that works for Scottish farmers by keeping things local? Are you aware of any mechanisms that are in place in that respect?

Are you saying that there needs to be a clearer definition of what we mean by high-quality food?

I know that we have started to get into this already, but I want to move on to the provisions in part 2 of the bill, which give Scottish ministers powers to provide support and additional powers on support in relation to conditions, eligibility requirements, guidance, capping, refusing or recovering support and exceptional market conditions.

I am interested in hearing—not from Pete Ritchie and Jonnie Hall for a wee while, although it will be good to hear from them too, but from some other people first—the panel’s thoughts on the level of detail in the bill and your views on powers to cap the agricultural payments, the potential for redistribution and the idea of tapering. We began to touch on the kind of detail that we might want to have in the tier system, and I am also interested in levels of parliamentary scrutiny.

We can start with all of that and then I have a special question for Professor Macdiarmid.

I thank Jonnie Hall for giving us that clarity around multiyear funding. One of my questions was about how that is possible if the UK Government is not coming forward with that funding. I think that you have been in conversation with the UK Government, Jonnie. How are you getting on with that?

I have another simple question, which is for Pete Ritchie. Can you expand on the call in the Nourish written evidence for support plans that are longer than five years?

Let us start with Jonnie Hall.

I actually have a couple of questions: the first is about animal welfare and the second is about nutrition, both of which are issues that have been raised.

It is interesting that Pete Ritchie is the only witness who has talked about animal welfare. Last week, the subject came up extensively. Do you think that the issue of animal welfare falls under the objective of producing high-quality food?

Last week, Kirsty Jenkins from OneKind said that other countries were moving away from using colony cages and farrowing crates, and Cathy Dwyer from the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission talked about the fact that we still allow surgical procedures to be carried out on young animals without anaesthetic. If such practices are continuing, can we call the food that is produced in that way “high-quality food”? If not, how can the bill, the rural support plan or the payment schemes ensure that high-quality food meets high animal welfare standards?