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Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 23 December 2024
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Displaying 1041 contributions

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Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

I have a very brief one. In your answers to Mr Beattie, you said that some of the bureaucracies might not be doing things in the way that they should be and might not be taking the time to listen. You have all talked about aspiration a great deal. How do we help young disabled folk and neurodiverse folk who want to establish their own businesses? We heard about that last week. Is there anything out there to help young folk who have the aspiration and the talent to establish their own businesses?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

That might be too difficult.

Oxana MacGregor-Gunn or Ashley Ryan, do you have anything to add to what David Cameron said?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

I am interested that you said “short term” there because Project Search in Aberdeen does not seem short term to me. Obviously, the job opportunity in the university is short term and it involves changed roles, but the key thing is that a large majority of folk go into employment and retain employment. That is not short term to me.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

It would be absolutely immense if you could give examples of employers.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

Thanks for that answer, Ashley. I recognise what you are saying about smaller local authorities maybe not having the resource. Are there any good examples of local authorities co-operating with one another to make sure that the right resource is there? I know from my home patch that there are some collaborations between Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council, for example. Is there good practice out there with collaboration between local authorities on this front?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

Are there any good examples out there of where services have adapted to help young folk with that? Maybe you cannot think of any off the top of your head.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

Ashley Ryan, you mentioned a diverse workforce. I asked the previous witnesses about the diverse jobs that we now have, which require a diverse workforce. What would you do to persuade employers that employing disabled people, learning-disabled people and people who are neurodiverse is the right thing for them to do? What would be your message to them?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

So, you are saying that we should get rid of the tick-box approach and make sure that folk are living up to what they claim they are doing.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

I have a wee supplementary on that, convener. The young folk from Dumfries and Galloway whom we talked to last week definitely had a difficulty with school. You talked about further and higher education, and one of the things that all those young folk that Mr Smyth and I talked to last week said was that they felt that, as far as the college was concerned, they were a bit of a tick-box exercise and they were not listened to. How do you work with FE and HE partners to make sure that young folk are listened to and that they are able to fulfil their hopes and aspirations? The folk whom we spoke to last week were very articulate and they had a strength of feeling that they put across very well about not being listened to in higher education.

09:15  

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Disability Employment Gap

Meeting date: 1 May 2024

Kevin Stewart

You obviously have a job to do in helping folk move on, hopefully into work. How often do you and other partners actually ask for those folk’s opinions about how they have been served and how they have been treated on that journey?