Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Inquiry into the Scottish Government's international work
Overview
The Committee is looking at how the Scottish Government engages internationally and what it wants to achieve from this work.
This includes both its EU and wider international engagement, its support for international development and how its external affairs policies interact with UK government policies in these areas.
Background to the inquiry
You may find the following information and links helpful in reading and responding to the Committee’s questions.
Before the elections in May 2021, the previous committee recommended this Committee should consider undertaking an inquiry into the Scottish Government’s external affairs policy.
The inquiry will cover how the Scottish Government should engage with the European Union and the rest of the world following the UK’s departure from the EU.
The Scottish Government’s engagement with the EU is set in the context of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) which manages some areas of the UK’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU. You can find more information about the TCA in these frequently asked questions.
Call for views
To help the Committee with its inquiry, we asked for views on the following:
- How should the Scottish Government engage with the EU and what should it seek to achieve from its engagement?
- How might the EU-UK TCA affect how the Scottish Government engages with the EU and how will that engagement interact with UK government policy in this area?
- What role should the Scottish Parliament have in scrutinising the operation of the TCA and how the TCA influences the Scottish government’s engagement with the EU?
- What should the priorities of the Scottish Government be in developing its external affairs work and overseas presence, including its international development policy?
- Does the Scottish Government’s budget for external affairs deliver value for money?
- Please elaborate. What principles should inform the Scottish Government’s international engagement (e.g. economic, democratic, human rights, climate change or cultural / ‘soft power’ priorities)?
- And should that engagement be based on geographical or policy focus? Please elaborate.
- How do the Scottish Government’s EU and international policies interact with UK foreign and diplomatic policy in these areas?
Submissions received
This call for views closed at 5pm on 29 October 2021.
The Committee received 16 submissions to the call for views.
Read the submissions received.
The Committee also received the following submissions:
- submission from Bord na Gaidhlig
- submission from European Merchants
- submission from Professor Kurt Mills and Dr Andrea Birdsall
- submission from the British Council Scotland
- submission from the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities
- submission from the Scottish Government
- submission from Universities Scotland
Papers by SPICe
The Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) has produced a summary of the written submissions received:
SPICe Summary of Written Submissions
For the Committee meeting on 3 February 2022, SPICe produced a summary of the written evidence the committee received along with a detailed outline of the oral evidence taken by the committee
Summary of written and oral evidence
For the Committee meeting on 16 December 2021, SPICe produced a paper on Scottish Government's international offices
Scottish Governments international offices
For the Committee meeting on 9 December 2021, SPICe produced a paper on European Parliament scrutiny of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement
European Parliament scrutiny of the EUUK Trade and Cooperation Agreement
For the Committee meeting on 25 November 2021, SPICe produced a paper on the Scottish Government External Affairs Policy Overview
Scottish Government External Affairs Policy Overview
Note: We aim to make all of the information we publish fully accessible. However, when documents are provided by external organisations this is not always possible. If you need the document provided in an alternative format please contact the Clerk to the Committee. Further information is available on our accessibility statement.
Committee report
The Committee published its inquiry report on Wednesday 6 April 2022.
Scottish Government responded to the Committee's inquiry report on 6 June 2022.
Read the correspondence (, ) posted 01 February 2023
.Oral evidence
3 February 2022
The committee took evidence from:
Professor Andrea Nolan, International Committee convener and Principal of Edinburgh Napier University, Universities Scotland
James Hampson, Director, UK Region and External Affairs, British Council.
Angus Robertson, Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture
Neil Watt, Head of European Engagement
John Primrose, Deputy Director of International Relations
Committee papers
Papers for the meeting on 3 February 2022
Official Report (substantially verbatim transcript)
Official Report of the meeting on 3 February 2022
13 January 2022
The committee took evidence from:
Mark Majewsky Anderson, Director of Research and Innovation, Glasgow Caledonian University
Lewis Ryder-Jones, Deputy Chief Executive, Scotland's International Development Alliance
David Hope-Jones OBE, Chief Executive, Scotland Malawi Partnership
Committee papers
Papers for the meeting on 13 January 2022
Official Report (substantially verbatim transcript)
Official Report.of the meeting on 13 January 2022
16 December 2021
The committee took evidence from:
Martin Johnson, EU Director, Brussels Office, Scottish Government
Dr Alexandra Stein, Head of Berlin office, Scottish Government
John Webster, Head of London Office, Scottish Government
Committee papers
Papers for the meeting on 16 December 2021
Official Report (substantially verbatim transcript)
Official Report of the meeting on 16 December 2021
9 December 2021
The committee took evidence from:
Anthony Salamone, Managing Director, European Merchants
Dr Fabian Zuleeg, Chief Executive and Chief Economist, European Policy Centre
David McAllister MEP, Chair, Foreign Affairs Committee, European Parliament
Committee papers
Papers for the meeting on 9 December 2021
Official Report (substantially verbatim transcript)
Official Report of the meeting on 9 December 2021
25 November 2021
The committee took evidence from:
Dr Kirsty Hughes, Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE)
Dr Adam Marks, International Policy Executive, Law Society of Scotland
Professor Murray Pittock, Co-chair of Scottish Arts and Humanities Alliance (SAHA), University of Glasgow
Committee papers
Papers for the meeting on 25 November 2021
Official Report (substantially verbatim transcript)
Correspondence
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