Meeting of the Parliament 18 September 2025
I will not because I am very tight for time—perhaps, if I have time later, I will.
The recommendations on induction and training in the next session of the Parliament are important because all the new MSPs and their staff will need to be aware of the work and remits of existing SPCB-supported bodies. Maybe we should send today’s Official Report to all our current colleagues too, because we have to get them interested in this.
The report makes an important recommendation that
“a parliamentary committee is given the specific responsibility for the accountability and scrutiny of SPCB supported bodies for a fixed period as a pilot exercise”
in session 7.
That will be an additional commitment in the already overstretched capacity of the SPCB and parliamentary committees, but it is clear that this is an on-going issue that is not going away. Delivering parliamentary accountability is critical to the effectiveness of how we work as a democracy.
The pilot scheme that is referenced in the motion must have clear metrics. What does accountability mean? How will we judge the effectiveness of scrutiny? What timescale will there be for feedback to the Parliament and for public reporting? It is critical that the Parliament hears the voices of service users, children, young people, marginalised individuals and those who are most affected by failures of oversight but who are not regularly enabled to be consulted. The pilot needs to be geographically inclusive, too.
In the criteria for establishing new bodies, making the most efficient use of resources is key. That is why I support the hub-and-spoke model and using existing public sector office space to make sure that we get the effectiveness that is needed. That aligns well with the work that I have been doing on my member’s bill on wellbeing and sustainable development.
The report makes an important and timely contribution to on-going efforts to make sure that our public sector operates with greater coherence, transparency and long-term accountability. We need to avoid duplication—that was an issue that I looked at in my bill and spoke to the Auditor General about. Clarity of roles is key, and a memorandum of understanding is a good way to avoid overlap—there is work that we could do in that regard.
I urge the Parliament to agree to our Scottish Labour amendment and to proceed with the recommendations on the pilot oversight committee in the next session, with clear metrics for that committee and the resources that are necessary to make it a success. Let us seize the moment, not only to tidy up structures but to make institutions and decision making fit for the future, transparent, effective and trusted.
I move amendment S6M-18936.1, to leave out from “, and agrees” to end.
Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.