Seòmar agus comataidhean

I do not have anything further to add, other than to thank the committee for its questions this morning.

Motion agreed to.

Convener, I missed part of the start of that question, but I hope that I can answer Mr Rennie fully. If not, I am more than happy to write to the committee with an update on the work that we are doing with COSLA.

As Mr Rennie will be aware, there has been a huge expansion of the ELC estate right across the country. In just about all local authorities, additional building work has been done. We are certainly keen to encourage and promote the ELC offer to eligible two-year-olds, and we will continue to do that through all the avenues that we can. We work closely with COSLA on that and on other issues relating to ELC.

If I have not answered Mr Rennie’s question fully, I am more than happy to come back to the committee.

That is certainly not something that I recognise. Local authorities and the Scottish Government have worked very closely on the matter, and we are certainly keen that any carers or parents who are keen to take up the offer are aware of it—that is important—and can make an informed choice about whether they access that offer. Obviously, it will not be suitable for or wanted by every family, but we need to make sure that people are aware of it, and we will continue to work hard to do that. If Mr Mundell has concerns about specific areas, I am keen for him to write to me so that we can try to address those with our COSLA and local authority colleagues.

We are keen to ensure that any child who is eligible for the ELC offer can take it up if appropriate, and we will continue to work hard to promote that through all channels and avenues that we can.

We have been working closely with the UK Government on data sharing so that local authorities can access the data to target families and provide them with information about the provision.

I would be happy to pass over to Joanna Mackenzie, who can update you more fully on the work that is being done, if that would be all right with you, convener.

That is a question that I asked myself, Mr Kerr. The simplest answer is that we do not know what the increases to the national living wage will be year on year, and we want to ensure that we maintain eligibility for the families who are currently eligible for the ELC offer. That is why there are to be yearly reviews.