Meeting of the Parliament 15 January 2026
I do not want to go down the road of being repetitive either. We have been round the houses on this issue a couple times, including at stage 2.
It is my intention to ensure that the Parliament is kept regularly up to date on how discussions are going. However, with regard to the amendment’s proposal to place the requirement in statute, the timing of the decisions made by the other Administrations and the issues around that are not within our gift, and we cannot remedy that. There is a possibility that the UK Government could legislate for its jurisdiction beyond the required timeline for reporting, as proposed by amendment 1.
The bill, as amended at stage 2, now includes a requirement to report on the bill’s operation, as Stephen Kerr said earlier, including on the ticket-touting provisions. I suggest that that addresses the underlying intention of amendment 1, which is to report back to the Parliament on the issues that arise from the bill.
If any significant developments arise before then, the Scottish Government will ensure that the Parliament is kept suitably informed and regularly updated, as I have previously undertaken to do. That is usual practice, but I will make an extra-special effort to ensure that procedures are put in place, given the issues that members have raised.
I hope that that provides Stephen Kerr with sufficient reassurance not to press amendment 1. Should he do so, however, I encourage members to resist it.