Michelle Thomson
Scottish National Party · Scotland
“We cannot lose sight of the human stories behind that—there has been not just uncertainty but financial worry and a loss of confidence in what should be their safest space: their home.”
“Even though section 104 orders are commonplace, like others, I remain unconvinced by the UK Government’s reasoning. It is a sober reminder that power devolved is power retained. I caution those who believe that, should the bill pass, the choice that they hope for will be immediately and seamlessly available.”
“Willie Rennie: I understand some of the changes that have been made, and I welcome some of the ones that have been introduced, but the issue is still incredibly sensitive. We do not yet have the investment that the changes are designed to bring. That is why acting carefully must be the first priority.”
“To that end, I thank the minister for the Government’s acceptance of my amendment 15. First-time buyers already face significant barriers, and it would have been unfair for the levy to have created further obstacles. I am grateful to colleagues and the minister for ensuring that fairness is at the centre of the legislation.”
“On the other side, we are reminded by philosophers such as Marcus Düwell that “in the concept of human dignity questions about the role of humanity, the rights of individuals, and the structure of our normative social and political orders are interconnected.” In essence, we confront a profound fault line between two fundamental considerat…”
“I will start my short remarks by popping in the intervention that I hoped to make on Willie Rennie. I hope that he will join me in my calls for an adjustment to the fiscal framework to remove the ridiculous limits on the Scottish Government’s capital borrowing powers, because that is a fundamental aspect of being able to improve our infra…”
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“The SNP might boast about meeting 18-week treatment time targets, but that is not the reality for young people in my region, with a service that is not serving them all. I look forward to hearing the various contributions in the debate. 16:46”
“The UK Labour Government is also already getting on with fixing the national health service in England, and it will get more people into work via that route. It is already delivering on the promise of 2 million more appointments and is introducing structural reforms to make the system work better. Meanwhile, in Scotland, we have a mental health crisis among young people and a child and adolescent mental health service that exists in name only. NHS Tayside reports that come directly from the management speak of waits of 13 to 14 years for young people to be seen by CAMHS. There is a direct relationship between that kind of performance on the part of our public services and the number of young people who cannot access work. They require public services that work in order to help them.”
“Every pound that is spent on social security over and above the block grant is a pound that is not spent on schools, hospitals and roads. Many people require vital support. We in the Labour Party are proud supporters of the Scottish child payment, which has been a great success. The state must be there for those who require it. However, we have to ensure that as few people as possible require that support, and our public services must be shaped in the direction of achieving that aim. The UK has committed £1 billion up front to support people into work. Of course, today—this goes to the heart of the question about poverty—is day 2 of a new national living wage, which sees 200,000 Scots get a much-needed pay rise and an additional £1,400 in people’s pockets, with the lowest-paid getting an annual pay boost of up to £2,500.”
“In the spring statement, there was a significant amount of focus on the changes to social security, and rightly so. The changes are significant and challenging for everyone across the country, particularly for those who rely on the support of the state. We have to be absolutely clear that a situation in which one in eight young people across the UK do not go into work or training when they leave school but, instead, rely on out-of-work benefits results in a huge loss to their personal potential, as well as a loss to our communities and our economy. The difficult fact for those of us in this Parliament is that that figure is even higher in Scotland. The Scottish Fiscal Commission highlighted in its December 2024 forecasts the fiscal challenges and choices that are presented by Scotland’s growing social security bill.”
“In an increasingly volatile world, it is absolutely right that the chancellor has increased defence spending by £2.2 billion this year. That will result in more jobs, more investment and more security for Scotland if a genuine partnership can be built between the Scottish and UK Governments to deliver that. The SNP claims to welcome the increase in defence spending, but it cannot do so with any credibility when it has opposed every one of the chancellor’s revenue-raising measures. National security requires economic security. We cannot have one without the other. Countries that cannot afford to fight wars do not win wars, and they might struggle to avoid them. Labour will always put our national security first. Our economic security underpins our national security.”
“Any return to the chaos of vast unfunded and unfundable spending commitments—whether on services or on tax cuts; I am talking about both sides of the aisle—would lead to rapidly spiralling borrowing costs. As a highly indebted country as a result of 14 years of Tory Government, with national debt running at 100 per cent of gross domestic product, we do not have the fiscal space to contemplate that. The room for fiscal manoeuvre is extremely constrained, so the UK Government is facing up to the fiscal realities in front of it. The cabinet secretary’s statement was replete with spending demands and rejections of revenue- raising measures. Her statement has to be considered in that context. Ever more borrowing is not available, and nor is it affordable.”
“Craig Hoy: Will the member take an intervention on that point? Michael Marra: No, thank you, sir. Rachel Reeves inherited an economy in which there had been no growth for 14 years and in which there was an in-year fiscal black hole, with the national reserve having been spent three times over in the first quarter. Public services were in a state of collapse and in need of immediate investment. That was the context in which difficult decisions were made. We cannot return to soaring interest rates, which the Tories inflicted on us. Instead, under the Labour Government, there have been three interest rate cuts, providing vital help to people with mortgages.”
“The Prime Minister is involved, day and night, in trying to deliver the best possible deal for the whole of the UK, and he is putting the interests of the country first in that regard. We must ensure that our economy can deliver the kind of public services that we need, and the UK Government is fully involved in conversations to ensure that we can get the best deal. The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s long-term decisions have led to the UK’s growth forecasts being revised up for next year, for the year after that and for the remainder of the forecast period. The chancellor’s decision to invest for the long term is designed to secure not only our economy but our public services for the long term. To put it bluntly, she is engaged in a rescue mission for UK public services, given the inheritance that she received just nine months ago.”
“Last month, the Organisation for Economic Co- operation and Development warned that tariffs will take a significant toll on the global economy, as it cut its growth forecasts for a dozen G20 countries. At the same time, the OBR has upgraded its medium-term growth forecasts for the UK, as the UK Government seeks to drive the economy and make strategic investments to modernise our infrastructure and increase productivity. Michelle Thomson: I accept and concur with the warnings about tariffs, but, given how frequently tariffs have been talked about over recent weeks, was the member as surprised as I was that there was no strategic consideration or thinking in the spring statement about their potential impact? Michael Marra: I fundamentally reject that conjecture that there is no strategic position.”
“[Made a request to intervene.] Michael Marra: No, thank you, madam. I will make some progress, because I am a matter of seconds into my speech. No economy, regardless of its size—major, medium or small—is immune to the challenges that are presented by this convulsion. Investor confidence in the debt markets is greatly impacted by this exogenous volatility. Almost all of us in the Parliament—with some minor exceptions—want much stronger economic growth. The SNP Government has recognised in broad terms that our ability to extract further revenue from our existing tax base is limited. The real question is: what is our strategy in Scotland to grow our median wage and our economic productivity?”
“For all of us with connections to the University of Aberdeen, Emily’s story is especially vivid and painful, and I reiterate my sorrow and condolence to her family. It is largely thanks to their work through the charity EmilyTest that we are here today. I hope that the bill, the act that it becomes and the change that it mandates will be a fitting response to their work, and that it will, indeed, protect and liberate all those oppressed and endangered by domestic abuse. 16:30”
“Sometimes flexibilities are possible in person that are not—or, at least, not yet—available virtually. Can we find ways to replicate those flexibilities? Fiscal fines can quickly dispose of a single incident but do they address patterns of behaviour that point to deeper-rooted problems? Could restorative justice that focuses on real needs and responsibilities represent a more enduring solution? We also need to keep learning. In his working paper on what became part 2 of the bill, Professor John Devaney emphasised that the review process must not be seen as the end result. The recommendations that such a review produces must be swiftly acted on. Finally, I, too, pay tribute to Fiona Drouet and honour the memory of her daughter Emily.”
“When we consider individual pieces of legislation, we need to ask how they will fit into the bigger picture. Efficiency is important—not for its own sake but because it helps to fulfil those foundational aims. Delays in process make it harder to protect people, harder to make sure that people have a fair trial and harder to uphold the rule of law. Justice delayed is, indeed, justice denied—for survivors and witnesses, who have to hold on to painful memories and anxious expectations, and for defendants, who may, as Stuart Munro from the Law Society of Scotland pointed out, be “held in custody for years on the basis of unproven allegations.”—[Official Report, Criminal Justice Committee, 22 January 2025; c 29.] We need to make sure that what sounds as though it will be more efficient will really be so.”
“This objective insists that power be exercised reasonably and in good faith and that states comply with their obligations under international law. It is about what the International Bar Association called “principles that both liberate and protect.” Those imperatives—to protect and to liberate— matter now more than ever. They matter in a week when, in Westminster, police armed with tasers broke into a Quaker meeting house, without even ringing the bell, to arrest six young women who are concerned about Palestine and the climate crisis. That was a shocking image but it is not so far from what is happening to peaceful protesters here in Scotland, including in Aberdeen. Who or what is being protected? Where is the liberation? When we consider our criminal justice system, we need to ask the big questions as well as the detailed ones.”
“Part 2 of the bill will give us, as a society, a new mechanism to recognise and address that fact by learning from what has gone wrong in the past. It is essential that we can also learn from lived experience and expertise. The second objective is to ensure that everyone’s right to a fair trial is protected and fulfilled. That means more than just the trial itself; it means having access to justice in the right place and at the right time throughout the process, without the barriers of cost, unavailability of support and lack of information. The third objective is to uphold the rule of law. That means not just the individual laws that are in force at any one time but also the principles that ought to underpin them. It means law that is accessible, clear, applies equally to all and protects fundamental human rights.”
“I have no doubt that the members of the Criminal Justice Committee will undertake work on those areas with relish and will meticulously pick through the detail. I wish them well in their endeavours. This bill is largely about processes and procedures. However, it also raises fundamental questions about what we want and expect the criminal justice system to do. There are three key objectives that are relevant to what we are discussing today. The first objective is to protect people from violence. That means physical violence, but it also means the slow violence of trauma and oppression; it means protecting the general public and especially those who are most at risk. We know that the effects of domestic abuse, including the fatal effects, extend beyond individual incidents and partners.”
“That includes the balance between accessibility and safety with regard to virtual court attendance, as discussed by Liam McArthur, Ben Macpherson and others, and the importance of ensuring consistency across the country, which will require stable internet connections, clear understandings of trauma and its various manifestations and suitable safe and secure spaces, as pretty much everyone has discussed this afternoon. There is not only the question of whether the definition of domestic abuse captures everything that it needs to, as Rona Mackay and Fulton MacGregor discussed, but also—as Mr MacGregor highlighted—the fact that domestic abuse will not be prevented by legislation but by behavioural and cultural change. Misogyny and the patriarchal structures that enable it must be dismantled.”
“I noted the Scottish Government’s responses to the committee’s recommendations, which contain a lot of good detail and consideration. I applaud that, because it is a very complex matter. My final comment is on report anonymisation, which is very difficult to achieve in practice. For example, a death might be highly publicised and picked up on by the media. It would take only one lawyer of the type depicted in “Better Call Saul” who operate in that space to publicise it even further and make the job of anonymisation that much harder. 16:24 Maggie Chapman: I thank members for this constructive and broadly consensual debate. It has been consensual not just on the principles of the bill but also, importantly, on some of the areas that require further detailed work.”
“Professor Devaney’s paper notes: “Whilst the deaths of individuals through illness and accidents have been closely monitored, those resulting from domestic homicide are more difficult to ascertain because the perpetrators, usually intimate partners, and occasionally other family members, are less likely to be forthcoming about the circumstances due to the inevitable legal consequences” and public condemnation. I feel that we also need to reflect on the role of shame in this context, because that is a blocker for both the perpetrator and the victim in a case of non-fatal strangulation. As the Criminal Justice Committee’s convener noted earlier, the review processes will work in practice to minimise such impacts.”
“Apart from through an officer’s curiosity, data cannot easily be probed, especially by using big-data tools or artificial intelligence. Without such data, we cannot assess prevalence. Beira’s Place assesses that the incidence of such strangulation is 20 per cent higher than is currently reported. I make that point because I believe that legislation will drive behavioural change among various bodies in collecting data. If they cannot report on the practice, they cannot effectively change it. I will make a few further short points on part 2 of the bill.”
“It has been observed that, because Scotland has not had such reviews thus far, it can learn from other countries that have, such as England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and many other jurisdictions. I agree, but I make the distinction that it is about not only the what but the how. Great care will need to be taken in devising processes that allow for data to be collected in the right format, given the complexity of such situations. That will be an important part of the review oversight committee’s role. I am grateful to Acting Chief Constable Steve Johnson for meeting me to discuss the subject. He helped me to understand, with reference to Police Scotland, how data on non-fatal strangulation is often not currently collected. Often, no hard or quantitative data is collected. If it is, it appears in long form.”
“It is therefore essential that any reviews are able to access information on its occurrence. Underpinning all of that is the importance of data. Multiple data collection points could occur across agencies, so having a multi- agency statutory framework for the domestic homicide and suicide review model that could start to collect the data would be helpful. The collection of data across justice, health, social care, local government and third sector agencies will not only help reviews but start to provide the data sets on prevalence and, therefore, to drive change. Any death that is caused by domestic violence is completely unacceptable, but we need to be able to respond to new threats if we are to prevent further deaths.”
“Consideration of the provisions of the bill that is before us will allow for a step forward, but, of course, the bill is in no way the be-all and end-all. I note, too, the efforts of Fiona Drouet on behalf of her daughter, Emily, and I acknowledge the comments in that regard that have been made thus far by my colleagues Rona Mackay and Pam Gosal, neither of whom is currently in her place in the chamber. Why do I think that there could be a fit? Strangulation can occur as part and parcel of coercive control in a domestic situation and can result in death, either as a direct cause or as an indirect cause, when it leads to suicide, as happened in Emily’s case. Non-fatal strangulation often indicates early- days coercive control and could act as an early warning trigger.”
“It is for that reason that I have started to consider a potential amendment for stage 2, whereby the bill would explicitly enable reviews to access data on earlier instances of non-fatal strangulation. I am grateful to the cabinet secretary for meeting me to discuss the issue, and I look forward—I hope—to working with her in due course as we approach stage 2. I believe that non-fatal strangulation is becoming a pervasive and pernicious problem. We can make progress against it in multiple ways, including by building awareness through social policy and a range of criminal legislation considerations. I hope that members across the chamber who are as concerned as I am will look at any and all legislation to start to effect change.”
“Members will know that, if I can profess any experience or expertise in the chamber, it tends towards economic, business and financial matters. They will therefore be relieved to know that I intend to keep my remarks short. My interest in the bill is in part 2—that is, the domestic abuse and suicide prevention sections. My remarks will be limited to that part. Domestic abuse is a crime that is almost exclusively perpetrated by men. While it is sometimes perpetrated by men on men, it is most frequently perpetrated by men on women. There is no change there. Members will know of my interest, which is shared by members across the parties in the Parliament, in non-fatal strangulation.”
“Alongside business, we are working with the unions and the workforce as we take the next steps, recognising the highly skilled workforce at Grangemouth. All of that having been set out, it is now key that the money is made available as soon as possible, to be invested in the most investable propositions, in collaboration with business.”
“The nine technologies that have been shortlisted from more than 300 technologies, following 120 stakeholder interviews, represent the greatest opportunities for Grangemouth. The key now will be in ensuring that the funding, which includes £200 million from the UK Government’s National Wealth Fund plus the Scottish Government’s £25 million, is invested in propositions and leverages private sector investment. The member is also right to say that the UK Government money will support only investable propositions and will not take the form of grants. Therefore, we will push the UK Government, as I have done already, to ensure that its funding is as flexible as possible, that it is available now and that it will meet the needs of business.”
“The project willow study represents the art of the possible, but funding and business appetite will always be the drivers. The £200 million that may be available to draw down depends on projects being investable solutions according to the National Wealth Fund’s criteria, not the UK Government. Business will take a risk only if there is policy and regulatory certainty, which there is not. How confident is the cabinet secretary that anything will come of the report? Does she recognise that the matter is, quite frankly, another of UK Labour’s failures for Scotland? Kate Forbes: The member is absolutely right to say that the value of any report is in how quickly its recommendations can be delivered on.”
“To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has made of the recent “UK Living Standards Review 2025”, from the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, and any implications for its work to grow Scotland’s economy. (S6F-03926)”
“To ask the Scottish Government what further engagement it has had with Ineos, in light of recent reports of additional redundancies related to the closure of the Grangemouth refinery. (S6O- 04432)”
“That is vital for the resilience of food production, the tourism economy and protecting the transport network from extreme weather, and it is of particular importance to rural communities, where it must be targeted towards creating employment opportunities and aiding local climate resilience, such as resistance to flooding and water shortages. Nature restoration is the other side of the coin from emissions reductions. It is the only mechanism for carbon capture and storage that has been proven to work at scale, and it needs to play a key role in Scotland’s journey to net zero. 16:38”
“Among the ways in which the Scottish Government could provide clarity would be by introducing an ambitious heat in buildings bill before the end of the current session of Parliament. That would give businesses that work in the field of heat networks, heat pumps, home and building insulation and heat storage batteries the confidence to invest and expand. As Marie McNair did, I would like to highlight the importance of investment in ecosystem services, including nature restoration at a landscape scale.”
“We need to have actual targets for what should be manufactured in Scotland, how much of it and where, how many jobs would be created, how many sites there would be, what supply chain businesses would be involved and what skills pathways would be required. It requires courage to set out a clear direction at that level of detail. There is risk. However, without a detailed strategy, Scotland is at risk of not having a direction at all and of investors not knowing when oil and gas will be phased out, what size we want the wind industry to be or how much of our energy should come from tidal, and how much of what is needed to build heat networks should be manufactured here.”
“Last year, the Institute for Public Policy Research cautioned that the UK was missing out on the economic opportunities that were arising from the transition to net zero primarily because of the absence of a well-defined green industrial strategy. The same could be said for Scotland. Even the Deputy First Minister would acknowledge that the green industrial strategy that was published by the Scottish Government is more of a prospectus than a strategy. At yesterday’s meeting of the Economy and Fair Work Committee, Tony Rodgers, the chief executive of Emtelle UK Ltd, a Scotland-based manufacturer of fibre optic cables and conduit, described passionately what is needed from an industrial strategy.”
“Surely she is not suggesting that she wants to return to a proliferation of a multitude of small landlords. Lorna Slater: I would say that social rented housing, which is still a larger market in Scotland than the private rented market, is the priority here. We have covered this ground before. The right to buy gutted social housing in Scotland, and that is what we should be focused on. Rents in the private rented market must be fair for tenants, but that is a discussion that we can get into on another day, because I have only four minutes. The green industrial strategy was discussed at yesterday’s meeting of the Economy and Fair Work Committee, which I attended, along with Mr Fraser and Mr Johnson.”
“In Europe and America, when such big institutional investors have acted as mega landlords, they have caused so many issues by buying up such large bits of property that the implementation of rent controls has been required. At the moment, the build-to-rent market in Scotland is very small. Even with what is in the pipeline, it represents a fraction of the total housing market. It is a very niche part of the housing market in Scotland. Therefore, it seems like a sensible precaution to put in rent controls before the build-to-rent market takes off—it is like putting stable doors in place before buying a horse. Michelle Thomson: I want to pick Lorna Slater up on what she has said about build to rent. I see it very much as a professionalisation of the market.”
“We need to benchmark our skills system against the very best internationally, rather than being too concerned with being in harmony with the rest of the UK. The Deputy Presiding Officer: We now move to closing speeches. 16:34 Lorna Slater: The Financial Times noted this week that the Labour Party has what it calls a “Meatloaf strategy” to rejoining the European Union—and I suspect that our Scottish Conservative colleagues share it—which is that it would do anything for growth, but it won’t do that. I would like to pick up on some of the comments of Murdo Fraser and Alexander Stewart on the build-to-rent market. I want to put the issue in context and challenge them on what they said. Build to rent involves institutional funds purchasing sites and building them out to provide rental accommodation.”
“No speech of mine could be complete without my mentioning the role of women-led businesses, and I welcome the leadership that the Scottish Government and, in particular, the Deputy First Minister have shown in that regard. The policy and the money that is made available are a good step forward, but the challenge remains to ensure in particular that women-led businesses are at the heart of our focus as we move towards net zero. Finally, I will make a few comments about skills. A major issue is the fashion in the UK and in Scotland for the past decades to emphasise competence-based training. That has downplayed the importance of knowledge, but knowledge is the key to new thinking and innovation.”
“The need for that policy certainty is also backed up by Scottish Renewables, which makes the general point in relation to clean power by 2030, alongside many other points, not least of which are the concerns around zonal pricing affecting investor confidence. It notes the comments of Alistair Phillips-Davies, Scottish and Southern Energy’s CEO, who stated that “zonal pricing would be a political and economic disaster”. That language is not usually used by such a senior business figure, and it correctly recognises concerns that are shared not just by the energy industry but by trade unions and major investors such as Sumitomo.”
“As the late Thomas J Watson, the founder and chief executive officer of IBM, said: “If you want to increase your success rate, double your failure rate.” In other words, to drive innovation and business growth, business needs to be able to take appropriate risk. However, for businesses to take those risks to drive growth, there must be policy certainty. I have mentioned several times already this week the need for such certainty to allow for the future work that we all hope for in Grangemouth and the wider area. I am disappointed to hear reports today of further redundancy notices being issued at some of the Ineos companies.”
“I add my voice to that of those who express concern that the UK Labour Government is not now able to confirm the previous funding commitment of £8.3 billion for Great British Energy. I hope that that is not going to be another broken UK Labour Government promise. It is vital that we increase confidence among the business community, and it is disappointing that the Economy and Fair Work Committee heard further evidence yesterday of how the UK Labour Government’s tax rise is suppressing it. Put simply, business investment is much less risk averse than Government investment, with every penny spent by Government scrutinised and every failed project criticised. That is not the case with entrepreneurs and innovators. The role of entrepreneurship cannot be overexaggerated, with businesses being the principal agents of change and growth.”
“I hope to be able to cheer us up a little, to be honest. Frankly, I am delighted with the Scottish Government’s motion and its recognition—indeed, its celebration—of the importance of investment and of the value of using the Government’s ability to leverage in private finance. Of course, I completely agree with the priorities. Increased investment is vital for growth and productivity, but by itself it is not enough. It has to be in a policy setting that encourages entrepreneurship and innovation, for it is those that create new products, services and businesses, leading to increased productivity. Investments will not deliver as much as they could if they are accompanied by disincentives such as the rise in employer national insurance contributions, which acts against growth and productivity.”
“I am talking about improvements such as building a train station at Winchburgh to put a booming town of more than 3,400 new homes on the main Edinburgh to Glasgow line, and building the short Almond chord link to turn the Edinburgh Gateway station from a white elephant into a hub for the new west town that would be as busy as Haymarket. As usual, the Scottish Conservatives are the party of common sense, which was clear from our budget proposals to cut taxes for workers and businesses. We believe that every penny of taxpayers’ money must be spent carefully to address the real concerns and needs of people up and down Scotland. 16:13”
“Will the member take an intervention? Sue Webber: Apologies—I have only four minutes. We were promised that that lifeline road would be dualled all the way to Inverness by 2025, yet here we are in February 2025 and the promise has been repeatedly broken. We must also think about the A9—the backbone of Scotland. The failure to fully dual that key road has tragically resulted in far too many serious injuries and deaths. More locally, simple improvements to rail infrastructure would bring obvious economic benefits.”
“Graeme Dey: Forth Valley College was identified as the lead partner for the skills transition centre because of its ability to deliver in response to the transitioning workforce. We look forward to continuing to develop that offering in the months ahead. We are actively working with Forth Valley College and wider partners across the Grangemouth future industry board to understand what additional skills-focused activity is needed and exactly how it can be provided, because we must ensure that whatever is required is available. Violence in Schools 6.”
“The centre will provide state-of-the-art equipment and facilities for Forth Valley College to provide training, both now and for future generations, to respond to the needs of Grangemouth and the emerging sectors as part of the net zero transition. The college is a critical partner for us as the provider of the skills intervention funding for the refinery workforce. Michelle Thomson: Given the leading role of Forth Valley College in the skills transition process, it will be vitally important that the college can assess capacity and ensure that it is in place to deliver on demand and at pace. How is the Scottish Government supporting the college to ensure delivery?”
“To ask the Scottish Government what role the skills transition centre at Forth Valley College will play in protecting and redeploying the skills base, and providing further training opportunities for a just transition of workers in the Grangemouth chemical cluster. (S6O-04374) The Minister for Higher and Further Education; and Minister for Veterans (Graeme Dey): We have been clear that every measure must be taken to support the workforce at Grangemouth. The skills transition centre is the first project to be delivered through the Falkirk and Grangemouth growth deal, with £4 million of investment from the Scottish Government.”
“As members will be aware, I am required under standing orders to decide whether, in my view, any provision of the bill relates to a protected subject matter—that is, whether it modifies the electoral system and franchise for Scottish parliamentary elections. In the case of the Budget (Scotland) (No 4) Bill, in my view, no provision relates to a protected subject matter. Therefore, the bill does not require a supermajority to be passed at stage 3. Budget (Scotland) (No 4) Bill”
“It is critical if we are to enable green hydrogen, which might be a project that we can move forward with at pace. We also need the UK Government to come to the table if sustainable aviation fuel is to be a possibility in the future. To summarise, I very much welcome the additional funding, and I thank the Scottish Government for taking such action. The Presiding Officer: I invite the cabinet secretary to wind up. Shona Robison: I have nothing further to add, Presiding Officer. Amendment 1 agreed to. Schedule 1—The Scottish Administration Amendments 2 and 3 moved—[Shona Robison]—and agreed to. The Presiding Officer: That ends consideration of amendments.”
“Michelle Thomson: I do not have concerns about how the money will be distributed; I agree with Stephen Kerr that the devil will be in the detail, and I think that that detail needs to be worked out at pace. However, I have no concerns that that will not be the case, because the Scottish Government has clearly stated that the money will be available in the new financial year. Therefore, in some respects, it is a more critical enabler than the £200 million, in relation to which—if people have read the National Wealth Fund criteria, as I have—there is clearly a great deal of work to do. During topical question time, I made a comment about the need for policy certainty. That is the elephant in the room. We need policy certainty around the likes of the Acorn project for carbon capture, utilisation and storage.”