Seòmar agus comataidhean

Under agenda item 3, we will continue our pre-budget scrutiny. I welcome to the meeting Emma Roddick, Minister for Equalities, Migration and Refugees; Rob Priestley, head of the mainstreaming and strategy unit in the directorate of equality, inclusion and human rights at the Scottish Government; and Fi Robertson, head of the Scottish budget team in the directorate of budget and public spending in the Scottish Government.

I refer members to paper 3.

As you will be aware, minister, the committee has been engaging with a citizens panel from the whole family equality project as part of our participatory approach to pre-budget scrutiny. In our previous evidence session, representatives from the panel, who are now seated in the gallery behind you, gave us some questions that they would like us to ask you. We will go straight into asking those questions now. I make it clear that we will ask the questions on behalf of the whole panel, but committee members will say who introduced each question in our previous session.

We have agreed who will ask each question on behalf of a panel member, and the minister will then respond. I am sure that it will go very well. I put on the record that the questions that we will ask on behalf of the members of the panel are verbatim as we think it is very important that their voices are put front and centre in this pre-budget scrutiny session.

In the light of that, I will kick off with a question that comes not from me, but from Erika, who asks:

“The panel think it’s important that Scottish Government ministers work together to find ways to close the poverty gap without people having to rely on charities and social security payments. Keeping the Promise is one way that children and families can be supported, but it must be delivered by a diverse workforce. Can the minister explain how she is working with the Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise to ensure that the Promise considers, reflects and supports the cultural and ethnic diversity of all of Scotland’s children?”

We move to Fulton MacGregor.

I have some questions. In previous years, and this year, stakeholders have told the committee about a lack of connection between policy and budget documents and have voiced concerns about the lack of meaningful detail in the equality and fairer Scotland budget statement. The Scottish Government’s response to recommendations from the equality and human rights budget advisory group includes a commitment to better align the programme for government and the budget process.

In that context, minister, can you explain how the committee’s previous concerns about a lack of clarity between documents will be addressed in the coming budget round and how the equalities assessment process will influence that? That concern comes not only from the committee but from the citizens panel, whose members we spoke to earlier, because that lack of connection has been raised at community level. The average citizen does not always see the connection between the decisions that are made and the direct impact that those have on their lives and communities. How will you address that?

I want to get a wee bit of further reassurance about the Scottish Government’s commitment to implementing the equality and human rights budget advisory group’s recommendations—in the interest of inclusivity, I do not use just initials, so that we all know what it is.

Will the minister explain the funding implications of implementing the recommendations? Are they significant or process-driven changes that can be met within existing budgets?

I have a wee follow-up question, which you might not be able to answer today. Retrospective analysis came up in our discussions with the citizens panel. Citizens asked what work is done, after budgets are set and policy is followed, to analyse the impact and see whether the money reached the right people. I am fully prepared for the fact that you might not have answers today, but it would be good to hear what work the Government does on impact analysis.

I will be happy to discuss that; that is fine.

Minister, you mentioned the observatory. Since you brought it up, where are we in that process? What is the status of the observatory at the moment? At what point will we see it having an impact? Those are questions that have been raised with me about the observatory.

Do members of the panel have another question that they wish to put?

Thank you to all of you for such thoughtful questions.

We now have time for a short discussion on how you have found the experience of participation and engagement with the committee. First, I want to ask committee members whether they have a particular question from the members of our panel that they would be happy to put to the minister in our next session. We have given that some thought prior to this meeting.

Thank you for those responses. I know that, especially in the teaching profession, there have been many initiatives over the years to increase the diversity of the workforce. I think that we would all admit that, unfortunately, we are not making the progress in that area that we would like to, but it is heartening to hear about the continued work and the focus of the Scottish Government on that.

I pass over to Meghan Gallacher.

Thank you very much, John. That was very helpful to the committee. I hand over to Justine, who will give us the question that the panel would like us to ask the Minister for Equalities, Migration and Refugees. I will leave it to Justine to introduce the next person to ask a question.