The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
Displaying 1041 contributions
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
I am a former Minister for Mental Wellbeing and Social Care, and, having established a number of lived experience panels, I can say that those do not have to be formal. Folk will often gladly tell you their tale for the simple reason that they do not want anyone else to go through what they have gone through.
My very strong suggestion in relation to the work as we go forward is that you, minister, in collaboration with the Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport, ask some of the lived experience panels that already exist regarding what their life experience of that kind of situation has been. That would help to formulate much better regulations.
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
Minister, it was good to hear you say that we should start small and move to expand. We have heard from people that there has to be flexibility in the regulations and the ability to adapt as we move forward. You said that most of this has been stakeholder led, but how many voices of lived experience have you heard in the formulation of the bill and, indeed, will you hear as we move forward towards the regulations?
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
I have a question before we move on. You have hit upon a couple of points. You talked about Government and industry sharing data, but we have heard that there is lack of communication with communities, and the data and knowledge that we have is often not passed on to communities. Would it be fair to say that we need to do more in that regard?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
In recent times, we have seen some controversy with information sharing or companies taking over information completely and utterly, including the national health service south of the border using the US company Palantir for patient medical information. If we were to consent to the motion on the LCM, what impact would that have on medical data sharing and the involvement of large companies in such data?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
There was a lot of opposition.
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
My first question is for Mr Duncan, who talked a fair bit about the fact that there seems to be a lack of communication with smaller businesses about the just transition. He and I had the pleasure of visiting businesses in Rosemount a fair while ago—it was maybe over a year ago—and top of the agenda for those businesses at that point was the cost of energy.
Mr Duncan, you also talked about possible funding changes. On the point about communication, do you think that we need to get it across to businesses that the just transition and the changes that we are going to make can play a part in reducing energy costs, which were causing them a great amount of grief when we visited them? That grief is probably greater now.
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
Thank you. You are saying that such sharing is on a positive basis and that folk have to give consent, but would it be possible, using regulation, to change that, or would that require primary legislative change? I will tell you what I am driving at. The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee highlighted the fact that
“it remains the case that the Secretary of State may make regulations within the devolved competence, acting alone. There is no requirement for the Secretary of State to obtain consent or to consult with the Scottish Ministers before exercising the power.”
Could that positive aspect of folk consenting to data sharing be changed using regulation, or would that require primary legislative change to turn all of that on its head?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
Since 1952.
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
Does Mr O’Hara have comments?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Kevin Stewart
You believe that the railway is important to gain modal shift. I am going to go back into history again. It is a fair time since the Formartine to Buchan line closed, but it closed to passengers before it closed to freight.