Hansard

I want to put on record the fact that, in considering potential Executive amendments to the bill, I have sought to work within the spirit of the bill, as drafted by the Education, Culture and Sport Committee. The Executive welcomes the proposed establishment of a commissioner for children and young people, and the amendments that I have lodged seek to ensure that a commissioner will be able to add value to existing systems and to avoid duplication.I have lodged four amendments, the purpose of which is to encourage partnership working and consultation. I will go on to talk about widening the scope of the commissioner's investigatory functions, but I will focus initially on the two partnership amendments in this group. It is important that all the amendments be viewed together, so that members can understand the intention behind the Executive's amendments. The policy intention is to ensure that the commissioner can cover all children and young people, to widen the investigatory remit while avoiding duplication and to ensure that the commissioner adds value and makes a positive difference.Amendment 8 would encourage the commissioner to work co-operatively with other organisations. Amendment 9 would impose a duty on the commissioner to consult and, where appropriate, to exchange information with other organisations that the commissioner considers have similar functions, with the aim of avoiding duplication. In its report, the Finance Committee expressed some concerns about the potential for duplication. We all want to ensure the establishment of a commissioner who makes a positive difference to the lives of young people. I know that the Education, Culture and Sport Committee has argued clearly that it is not for the commissioner to take on the role of other agencies; rather, it is for the commissioner to ensure that those agencies give sufficient priority to the rights and needs of children and young people. I welcome that mainstreaming approach, and agree that the focus must be on the added value that a commissioner can bring. To ensure that such an approach works successfully, the commissioner will need to make links with a range of organisations and, where possible, work in partnership with similar organisations if he or she is to raise the profile of children's rights. I appreciate that the bill already includes a section that directs the commissioner to take "reasonable steps" to consult organisations that work with and for children and young people, but there is a range of regulatory organisations that may not fall within the current definition but with which it is particularly important that the commissioner develops a working relationship.I have not sought to include a list of organisations in the amendments, as I am aware of the committee's desire to avoid including lists within the bill. I therefore propose that it should be for the commissioner to determine which organisations he or she considers to have similar functions. I would imagine that, depending on the issue, the commissioner might want to build links with the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education, the Disability Rights Commission, the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Commission for Racial Equality. The commissioner may, of course, wish to work with organisations on an investigation or on a joint awareness-raising campaign.It is important to state on record that, as the bill is a committee bill, no guidance will be prepared for or issued to the commissioner, so a newly appointed commissioner will look to the bill and the explanatory notes for such guidance. Parliamentary speeches will also help in setting the agenda. In the absence of formal guidance, the amendments will send an important signal about working methods. We as members may be clear about the type of approach that we expect a children's commissioner to bring to his or her role, but we need to ensure that an incoming commissioner—whether that is in 2003 or 2023—also understands that.It is important that we place on record that the commissioner should have a focus on working and communicating with other organisations and on sharing information. All that will help to increase the effectiveness and impact of the commissioner. The amendments are not simply about discussing future work programmes but about establishing collaborative working arrangements. However, the amendments will not limit the commissioner's independence. It will still be for the commissioner to decide when to work alone and when to work with other organisations. It will also be for the commissioner to decide whom he or she wants to work with and on what basis.The amendments are closely linked to amendment 11, which deals with investigatory powers and which I will speak to later. To ensure that investigations can be carried out without the risk of duplication, we need to ensure that there are good communication links between the commissioner and other agencies. The intention of the amendments is to provide the commissioner with the flexibility to make a difference while seeking to prevent duplication and overlap.I apologise for taking so long to speak to the amendments, but it is important that we have some of those issues on the record.I move amendment 8.