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 665 contributions
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
Even if we have those tightly defined criteria to begin with, there is still a concern that not everyone who meets the criteria will take up the moratorium. Citizens Advice Scotland has called for everyone who enters compulsory treatment to be automatically offered access to a mental health moratorium. Would the Government consider that, rather than simply waiting for those who are working with a person in treatment to apply for a moratorium?
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
As things stand, the regulations that you will draft and publish before stage 3 will refer only to compulsory treatment as a criterion. You are carrying out a consultation at the moment, and the timing of the consultation is not such that the regulations may differ.
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
What I am getting at, whatever you decide, is whether the timing of your consultation and of the parliamentary process for publishing the regulations before stage 3 will give you sufficient time, should you want to change the compulsory treatment criterion. Or will you bring in that criterion and then, a few months later, decide that you are going to change it based on the consultation?
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
I am still not quite clear about the timescale. Are you saying that you might receive a response to the consultation that might or might not change your current thinking on the criteria in the regulations that you publish?
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
Good morning, minister. I will kick off with questions on the mental health moratorium, which has been discussed quite a lot in the evidence that the committee has heard. I appreciate that the details will be covered by the forthcoming regulations, but one issue that has been raised concerns the criteria according to which the mental health moratorium may be used. As things stand, the moratorium will be available only to those in compulsory treatment, based on the Government’s position. What is the thought behind that? Roughly how many people do you expect the criteria to cover?
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
You listed just some of the many strategies that we have. There are lots of strategies out there. I am not going to ask whether a strategy is missing, but does the gap lie in the physical delivery to meet the definition? Is the implementation not there? Is that what you are suggesting?
Economy and Fair Work Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 29 November 2023
Colin Smyth
Is that because the processes are just not in place or is it because what local government aims to achieve may be very different from the community’s aims, because of the lack of a definition?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Colin Smyth
If we invest in those businesses, can the opportunities that are there at the moment make sure that they have enough work?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Colin Smyth
Fergus Mutch, renewable energy is not a new thing. There has been a criticism in the past that we have seen the growth of renewables but not the growth of the economic benefits that have flowed from it. Too many supply chain jobs have gone overseas, such as those in the development of turbines. How do we ensure that we do not make the mistakes of the past and that your members benefit? What do they need to make sure that they benefit from the growth in renewables and the transition?
Economy and Fair Work Committee
Meeting date: 22 November 2023
Colin Smyth
Ronan O’Hara, is that an observation that also you have? Crown Estate Scotland works closely with businesses, whether they be in tidal development or, in the longer term, offshore wind. Are businesses preparing for that period, and do they have enough business, if you like, to get them to the point at which some of the leasing that you have done starts to come to fruition?