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Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 21 August 2025
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Displaying 1691 contributions

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Education, Children and Young People Committee

Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland (Strategic Plan 2024-28)

Meeting date: 17 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

I am sure that we will all watch the area with interest. Thank you.

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

Is there a possibility that the report was commissioned to neutralise objections, given that the committee was going to be looking at the landscape?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

However, as you set out in your statement, the team wants there to be a new commissioner—that is a statement of fact. You have found out some other incidental stuff but, as Ms Smith pointed out at the start of our session, we are looking at the wider landscape including independence, governance, accountability, costs, budget lines and overlap, which are underpinned by strategic positioning and—critically—outcomes. It sounds very much as though you were given a different brief, to look more gently at the concept of introducing a further commissioner, by the directorate that wants to do so.

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

Thank you. You mentioned human rights earlier. In any discussions about the concept of a number of commissions or commissioners looking at human rights and the complexity around that, was there any recognition that creating a hierarchy of rights could be problematic, or did the discussion not go to that depth? In the Parliament, we have seen challenges with recognising different sets of rights, and we see that in the wider environment, too.

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

Good morning and thank you for joining us. I have a couple of quick questions. Your report states that the Scottish Government commissioned you. Can I check whether the directorate that commissioned you is the same one that is now looking at introducing a new commissioner for learning disability, autism and neurodiversity?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

In other words, it is potentially in the team’s interests to limit the scope of what your research would evaluate. Let us imagine for a minute that the team is keen on introducing a new commissioner for its area of interest. It would make sense to limit the scope of what you were asked to evaluate in terms of the wider landscape, as you set out today in your evidence. Is that a fair assessment?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

What reception did you get for your research? Have you met the team subsequently and have you taken any feedback from it? If so, what was that?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Scotland’s Commissioner Landscape

Meeting date: 16 April 2024

Michelle Thomson

Thank you very much. That is all, convener.

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill: Financial Memorandum

Meeting date: 26 March 2024

Michelle Thomson

Good morning to the witnesses, and thank you for attending the meeting.

I want to pick up on that last point and reiterate what my colleague Liz Smith and the convener have said. It is absolutely necessary that we have an updated financial memorandum before the conclusion of stage 1, and certainly before the production of any report. That is because the satisfaction of the Finance and Public Administration Committee critically depends on the numbers being within certain ranges and as accurate as they can be. I add my voice to that. That is very important.

As well as the finance side, we have responsibility for public administration. I must admit that I am quite surprised at how we have ended up where we are in respect of organisational culture. My colleague Liz Smith set the backdrop. We have seen an increasing number of framework bills. Such bills carry significant risks to the public purse in that a lot of the costs are put in past the stage at which the numbers bods—that is, us—are able to look at them in detail. From a public purse point of view, they represent a significant risk of a waste of money. What conversations are going on in your area about the risks against the backdrop of chronic shortages in public sector funding? What are the risks that are actively being considered of using framework bills?

Finance and Public Administration Committee

Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill: Financial Memorandum

Meeting date: 26 March 2024

Michelle Thomson

Does any other project management training take place or is it just all in-house, as you have articulated?