Meeting of the Parliament 24 September 2025
I apologise profusely for not being in the chamber in person. The reason for that—the Finance and Public Administration Committee’s visit to the Lithuanian Parliament—is a rather different one from those that are normally given.
I thank the minister for the letter that she sent me this morning and for the statement. I am very grateful to her on both counts. I am obviously delighted that the Scottish Government has seen fit to ensure that the will of Parliament is supported and that it will now lodge the necessary financial resolution to allow the bill to proceed to stage 2.
I am also delighted by the commitment, which I received at an extremely positive meeting last week, that the Scottish Government and I, and members across the chamber, can work together to ensure that we lodge the best possible amendments so that we can, I hope, pass the bill at stage 3.
I am very aware that there is still an awful lot of work to be done on the bill, but I have to say that I think that today is a very good day for young people right across Scotland and for the outdoor education sector. It is also a very good day for MSPs right across the political spectrum who have worked so incredibly hard to persuade ministers as to why the bill is so necessary in building the resilience of our young people.
I will ask the minister two questions. First, can she give me a little bit of a guide as to when she thinks that the Scottish Government will be able to start the discussions that have to take place at stage 2? Secondly, how long does she envisage that process taking?