Seòmar agus comataidhean

This is reminding me of “The Antiques Roadshow”, because things are only worth what someone is willing to pay for them. How do you marry that with the value of the loans in the consolidated accounts? At what point would you, as auditor general, say that the Government is not being realistic about the opportunity to recover its investments? It could very well just say up front, “Look, we’re going to write these assets off, because we don’t expect any future owner of the assets to give us any of the money back.” Is there some pretence that it might get some of the money back, and this is just a risk assessment of how much it might recover? It just sounds like a very subjective approach to what has been invested and how much might be lost.

I see from your report that, as of the end of March this year, the total outstanding capital borrowing was £1.76 billion, and the amount that was borrowed for capital projects was less than the cap. Therefore, there is still a bit of wriggle room, so if the Government wanted to borrow more money for capital projects, more money would be available.

That is helpful feedback. You mentioned the concept of borrowing. We are frequently told that the Scottish Government has no ability to borrow money, but can you talk us through the national loans fund and how that is used? The presumption is that the Government cannot get itself into debt per se. However, it has an ability to borrow when that is required. Where does that money come from and what can it be spent on?

I will have to choose between the two questions that I had shortlisted, but that is fine. I will ask about rural connectivity, which is an important area and one that is of particular relevance to Scotland. The report hones in on it in a whole section and particularly in paragraph 21, on coverage in urban areas versus rural areas.

On the back of what Geoff Huggins said, I appreciate that getting to the last couple of per cent of people is always the most difficult and often the most expensive as well, from a technical, physical and logistical point of view. However, I am aware of the Scottish and UK Government schemes and the work in the private sector. Lots of activity is taking place on things such as the broadband voucher scheme, the shared rural network and so on. Can you give me an update on the progress on that? When do you think you might hit 100 per cent to ensure that rural communities have access to 4G and broadband that is as good as the access that urban communities and cities have?

Others will ask about access to local services, particularly through local authorities, and some of the difficulties that people face. You have talked about Denmark, Singapore and other countries. Is anyone at any point a little bit embarrassed by the lack of progress in Scotland? Do you not feel that, as a nation, we should be leading the way and not chasing?

There might be some disparity in the figures. I am just quoting from the Auditor General’s report, which quotes directly from the Scottish Government’s figures. The Scottish household survey was last published on 23 December. I appreciate that another one is probably coming out soon, and it may show that that figure of 91 per cent has gone up; I hope that it does.

Notwithstanding that, having technical access is not the same as having the knowledge to use what you can access. It remains a fact that 15 per cent of our population lack basic foundation digital skills. The number of people who have the skills to use high-speed internet is disproportionate, relative to the number of people who can access high-speed internet. What work are you doing to benchmark that against other parts of the UK or countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development region of which we are a part?

Why do one in 10 households in Scotland still have no access to the internet?

That demonstrates my point. You want to tackle digital exclusion and improve access, and you made a commitment to distribute devices, which is a key component, but you failed to do so. Is that not why reports such as the one that we are considering are so critical of progress? Perhaps that is for you, Ms Fraser, as you are in charge of this.

The Scottish Government was keen to ensure that the rights of children were incorporated and enshrined in law in Scotland. Are any of the articles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child currently being breached as a result of digital exclusion? For example, I point to articles 13, 17 and 26, which are specifically related to access to information, social security and so on. There is also article 45, which says that Governments must consult the United Nations Children Fund—UNICEF—on their policies with regard to the rights of children. Has consultation taken place, or has the Scottish Government worked with UNICEF on the roll-out of policies to tackle digital exclusion among children?

Good morning. I have to say that I found the report rather depressing in its content, as it is undoubtedly critical of the progress, or lack thereof, on addressing digital exclusion. I say that I am depressed because, when I joined the Parliament eight years ago, the very first portfolio that I was appointed to was shadow digital minister, which I found quite amusing, because there was no digital minister to shadow. I do not know whether my former leader was just keeping me busy and out of trouble.

The point is that, at that point, I felt that there should be a digital minister—the Government should have had someone who was dedicated to tackling digital exclusion, and addressing issues such as connectivity and enhancing the skills of the general populace.

We are now some eight years on, and I do not think that the content of the report reflects sufficient progress, notwithstanding some of the issues that we went through during the Covid period.

I draw your attention to paragraph 42. I have given what is perhaps a subjective view from an individual member of this Parliament, but the Auditor General for Scotland is clear himself when he says:

“It is unclear whether digital exclusion remains a priority for government ... particularly in the absence of a clear strategy and supporting activity. The Scottish Government has not yet set out any revised ambitions for tackling digital exclusion.”

It is there in the report, in black and white. That was just a few months ago. Was the Auditor General right or wrong?