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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 28 December 2024
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Displaying 1041 contributions

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Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

I wouldnae be buying the pizza. [Laughter.]

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

I get all that, but who needs their heads knocked together to get this show on the road?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

I want to move on, convener. We have heard about the perceived differences in how jobs will operate in this new future. Professor de Leeuw talked about there being a much more transient workforce. Would it be fair to say that there is already a pretty transient workforce in the north-east? Aberdeen has operated as a global city. Folk have come and folk have gone. Aberdonians have moved elsewhere and come back. Is that transience maybe less of a challenge for Aberdeen and the north-east of Scotland than it would be elsewhere?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

Sure. You talked about flexibility, which is another key aspect of the shift that we need to make. Last Friday, I attended a Shell event on energy that was specifically for girls, where 18 schools from across the north-east were represented. From speaking to some of the young women there, it is clear that they recognise now that, in relation to the fields that they want to enter, how they work will have to be much more flexible in the future. One lass I spoke with wants to be a mechanical engineer. She recognises that, although she will want to remain a mechanical engineer, there will have to be flexibility in her working life.

It seems, though, that we have some impediments at this time in terms of those flexibilities, including getting the likes of the skills passport. In your opinion, the future workforce recognises that there needs to be flexibility. Is it the case that some of the trade bodies are not accepting that there needs to be that flexibility? If they do not, they could cause a real problem in terms of us reaching our ambitions.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

I shall. Thank you, convener.

My very brief supplementary is for Mr Boland, who said that the skills passport is in a wee bit of a difficult phase. As you know, Skills Development Scotland will be on the panel after you. What do you think are the difficulties, and how can they be overcome quickly?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

By the sounds of it, there have maybe been too many meetings and not enough action.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

Thank you very much, Mr Boland.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

There has been quite a lot of talk today about collaboration. We have just touched on communication, and I want to concentrate on collaboration and communication. Let us start with collaboration, because I think that it is in all our interests to ensure that the north-east does not just survive but continues to thrive. I think that most folk from the area would agree that that should be the case.

To get to that point, we all have to collaborate. Ms Harrick, in particular, has talked about the collaboration that exists across the industry. Is there enough collaboration between Governments—the Scottish and the UK Governments—industry, academia and communities for us to get this right?

Let me give you an example. Ms McCarthy said that it sometimes took 12 years to get a major project all the way through from planning to consent. We recognise that we do not have a huge amount of time to make the just transition. What do we need to do by way of collaboration to get the Governments and all the other parties, such as industry and communities, to understand that we need to do this a bit more speedily than we are at the moment and to be a bit more flexible as we move forward? Maybe Ms McGinlay would like to answer first.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

Does anyone else want to come in on that?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition (North-east and Moray)

Meeting date: 15 November 2023

Kevin Stewart

I will be very brief.

Aberdeen and the north-east have been a global player in the oil and gas industry—top of the tree—and I am sure that we all want the same to be the case in relation to renewables in the future. I could ask lots more questions about planning and consenting, but I wonder whether the witnesses could oblige us by writing to us on how they think that the planning and consenting system could change in order to be beneficial for the just transition.