Meeting of the Parliament 22 March 2016
I recognise that Clare Adamson has done a power of work on these matters, particularly in relation to procurement, including attending meetings in Brussels to make sure that the Scottish interest is not neglected. I commend her for that, and I commend the other members across the Parliament who have given their time to the eight meetings of the task force that have taken place thus far.
I agree that things are beginning to look up for the whole steel sector in Scotland and I am pleased that BRC continues to be successful, including in providing steel for the Aberdeen western peripheral route, contrary to the implication of some press speculation that was drawn to my attention.
The work that we have done on business rates, energy, the environment, skills retention and procurement is certainly not a token gesture. All our work has been in support of the main objective, which is to retain a successful steel sector in Scotland.