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Good morning. The briefing notes that the number of students successfully completing their course and achieving a qualification has fallen. According to surveys carried out by the Scottish Government and the National Union of Students Scotland, student poverty could be a contributing factor. You have also highlighted that that represents a risk not only for individual students but for public investment and value for money. Do we have enough information to enable us to rigorously assess the reasons for students not completing their courses?

Are we doing enough to support students who are thinking of withdrawing from courses?

Exhibit 3 shows college leaver destinations in 2019-20. It highlights that a growing number of college leavers went to university, that there was a 10 per cent reduction in college leavers going into work, and that, as you have mentioned, 15.6 per cent of college leavers were unemployed or unavailable for work—that is a 3 per cent increase from 2018-19. What is your assessment of the value for money that is being delivered by Scotland’s colleges, in light of leaver destinations?

He said that in evidence to the committee.

Do you feel that the strength of feeling from CMAL about the preference for a builders refund guarantee was fully conveyed to ministers?

Good morning, Mr Mackay. Was the decision to award the ferry contract to FMEL in any way linked to political calculations or dictated by a political timescale?

We heard from Mr McColl that he thought that there was a future for the yard even without the contract in question and that there was a rush to make the announcement even though the negotiations were still going on. CMAL felt that that hindered it in its negotiations, as it would have been harder for the Government to pull back from that announcement after having made such a high-profile announcement that the contract was going to the yard. I will move on.

On that point, who signed the contract?

Good morning, Mr Middleton. The Auditor General for Scotland stated that there is “a mismatch” between Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd’s

“strength of feeling about the scale of risk”—[Official Report, Public Audit Committee, 28 April 2022; c 41.]

involved in awarding the contract to FMEL and how that was communicated to ministers. As the accountable officer for Transport Scotland at that time, what role did you have in providing advice to ministers?

In your opinion, it was not.