Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Welfare Reform Committee’s 19th meeting in 2014. I ask everyone to ensure that mobile phones and electronic devices are switched to silent or airplane mode.
We start today with a new set of committee members. We have received resignations from the deputy convener, Jamie Hepburn, and from Annabelle Ewing and Linda Fabiani. I thank those members for the service that they gave the committee. I worked very closely with Jamie and we had a very positive relationship. The committee worked very well because of the co-operation that we always achieved, so I hope that we will go forward in that way with our new members, who are Clare Adamson, Christina McKelvie and Joan McAlpine. I am sure that we will.
The first agenda item is declarations of interests. I invite our new members to declare any interests that are relevant to the committee’s remit, and I remind them that declarations should be brief, but sufficiently detailed to make clear to us the nature of the interest.
I have no registrable interests in relation to this committee. I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests for other information.
I draw members’ attention to my entry in the register of members’ interests, in particular to the fact that I write a column for the Daily Record, which is a newspaper that has been known to comment and campaign on welfare issues.
I draw members’ attention to my entry in the register of interests, but I have nothing to declare for this committee.
Thank you all very much, and welcome aboard.
Air ais
AttendanceAir adhart
Deputy Convener