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I and the committee will appreciate that further information, but given Ms Bennett’s answer, there seems, at least, to be a range of potential costs that could be assumed for VAT. My understanding of the standing orders on what is required for financial memorandums is that such a range could have been put into this financial memorandum.

I absolutely accept that there are drawbacks to both approaches, but do you accept that the drawback with this sequence of events is the challenge that it presents to parliamentary scrutiny of what, in the Government’s own words, is the most significant reform taking place in the current parliamentary session?

Finally, the emergency budget review, which was announced last week, included a £70 million saving in the budget line for social care and the NCS. We all understand why the review was necessary, and I am not disputing the need for it, but how much of that £70 million, if any, relates to NCS costs in the current financial year?

That would be appreciated—thank you.

In the first instance, I would be interested in your thoughts on the level of pay in Scotland’s colleges, specifically at senior management and principal levels. Do you think that it is justifiable that there are multiple college principals in Scotland who earn more than the First Minister?

Thank you. I certainly agree with that sentiment. If you look at pay growth in the sector over the past 30 years, you see that pay growth for senior management, and in particular principals, has completely outstripped, by a huge margin, that for lecturers or support staff.

I appreciate that you shared with the committee the lessons learned report that Strathesk recently completed. However, I got a distinct sense of déjà vu when reading it. The report notes that the most consistent theme is the crushing lack of trust between the parties in the National Joint Negotiation Committee negotiations. In fact, it refers to it as a

“debilitatingly low level of trust”.

The report also observes the fact that that conclusion is not new—it was the key conclusion in the similar review that was conducted by John Sturrock five years ago. Why has no progress been made on resolving the core issue that is resulting in such regular industrial action?

I accept that the relationship that union and college management have individually with the Scottish Government is better than the relationship that they have with one another. However, given that this conclusion was exactly the same one that John Sturrock came to five years ago, what specifically has the Scottish Government done in that intervening period to play a constructive role in facilitating a better relationship between unions and management, rather than your direct relationship with each of them? What role have you played in this period of time to try to resolve what John Sturrock concluded about their relationship with one another?

Will the Scottish Government issue a fuller response to the exercise? I accept that it is primarily for the unions and college management to respond to, but there is a role for Government here, and there are conclusions in relation to the Government. Will there be a fuller response from you on the contents of the report?

Thanks for that, minister. Can I clarify on what timescale the committee should expect to see the Government’s response?

My instinctive position is that this is an appropriate point at which to close the petition. The arguments for and against an inquiry have already been heard, and Parliament previously considered that there was no need for an inquiry. The petition was held open for the purposes of the Children and Young People (Information Sharing) (Scotland) Bill, which the Government introduced to rectify the issues that came about as a result of the Supreme Court judgment on the named person policy. In the end, the Government withdrew that bill in the previous session of Parliament. I understand why the petitioners still feel the way that they do, but the arguments on an inquiry have already been heard, a position has been reached and nothing has changed since that point. The reason why Parliament kept the petition open is also no longer relevant.