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I can do that. I covered much of those issues when answering Ms Grant’s question, but I can add more to it. In the context of social security, Social Security Scotland’s local delivery service gives clients the option to meet someone in person, face to face, as well as through digital applications.

We continue to fund an independent advocacy service to support disabled people accessing and applying for social security benefits. That service, which is currently being delivered by VoiceAbility, is free and is independent of the Scottish Government and Social Security Scotland. Since its launch in January 2022, the service has supported more than 13,000 disabled people in more than 15,000 cases as they navigate the devolved side of the social security system.

On general digital connectivity, through a combination of our work on the R100 programme, our Scottish broadband voucher scheme and continued commercial coverage, all homes and businesses across Scotland should be able to access superfast broadband connections.

You mentioned what has happened in Tiree. We recognise the impact that can be felt when things go wrong. In that particular case, I believe that Kate Forbes, the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic, was able to support the necessary work, and that a solution has been found and connectivity is back in place. That incident has shown us where we need to do better, and we absolutely accept that. There are definite lessons to be learned from that case and I have been given assurances that we are progressing that work.

In the wider context, we are investing more than £600 million in R100 contracts and expect to cover 113,000 premises across Scotland, so the reach is expanding and the coverage is there. The largest of those contracts—the north contract—has already delivered 16 new fibre optic sub-sea cables. They provide future-proofed and resilient connectivity to up to 15 Scottish islands and will ultimately connect more than 60,000 premises, including those in the Highlands and Islands.

The Scottish Government is also playing a lead role in delivering project gigabit by managing all local and regional activity in Scotland as well as jointly managing delivery of the nationwide project gigabit contract with the UK Government.

Finally, we have also introduced amendments to the building standards scheme to require all new housing developments in Scotland to provide gigabit-capable infrastructure, subject to a cost cap of £2,000 per premises. That legislation came into force on 1 January 2025.

I know that you take this issue very seriously and you raise it legitimately. The civil legal aid system is generally effective in delivering help to those who need it, but we recognise that there are some challenges in certain types of cases and locations. That is why solicitors in all parts of Scotland can access funding for work to be carried out under legal assistance schemes. The schemes are flexible enough for solicitors to travel to rural and remote parts of the country to conduct work, should it not be possible to instruct a local agent.

The Scottish Legal Aid Board is aware of the difficulties that people may face in securing access to justice due to the relatively low number of solicitors in the Highlands and Islands. That was a factor in the creation of the Civil Legal Assistance Office—the CLAO—which has offices in Inverness, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. The Inverness office opened in 2008, and it serves the Highlands and Islands, including the Western Isles.

The Regulation of Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2025 is a significant step towards expanding access to justice. Once commenced, the legislation will remove restrictions that prevent charities, law centres and citizens advice bodies from directly employing solicitors to provide certain legal services to some of the most vulnerable people in society. I hope that the committee agrees that that is a significant step in expanding who can provide legal advice.

The Scottish Government is taking forward reforms outlined in our “Legal aid reform: discussion paper”, which was published earlier this year. That should simplify the process for solicitors and those needing legal assistance, and it includes longer-term proposals for funding and improving the delivery of services. All views are welcome on that discussion paper.

On women’s aid organisations, I have had the honour of visiting provision throughout Scotland, from Dumfries to way up in the Highlands and Islands. Their work is vital, and I commend it. They work incredibly hard, and I have spoken to women who have benefited as well.

I have mentioned before the equally safe strategy, which recognises that small rural and island communities face particular challenges. The strategy is funded accordingly, and the equally safe delivery plan is in place. We have mentioned the funding challenges, especially concerning multiyear funding and the precarious funding that can happen as well. However, I will end on a reminder that at least £5.4 million from the delivering equally safe fund is allocated to rural and island communities—and that excludes rural areas that are predominantly within urban local authorities, so the actual amount will be higher.

The equally safe delivery plan is held jointly with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, and it provides services through third sector organisations across multiple portfolios, including health. It is an example of cross-portfolio delivery.

We are expanding access to justice in the ways that I mentioned, for instance by removing restrictions that currently prevent charities, law centres and citizens advice bodies from providing legal services. You and I both know that they often have solicitors working in them. Those bodies have that support, but they have not been able to offer services, so I think that there will be a significant impact in expanding provision. Citizens advice centres and third sector organisations are based in local communities, and that change should make a difference.

I am sorry, Ms White, but I missed something there. Did you name a particular cabinet secretary?

I might have to bring in my colleagues for more technical detail on the pilot.

Can I make a comment about the rural assessment toolkit, which I may mentioned earlier? Toolkits are incredibly helpful because they give practical examples of how not just civil servants but everyone can get an accurate picture of where we are and then move strategically through things. The rural assessment toolkit was launched in April 2025, so the scaffolding is there.

You also mentioned particular areas. The rural delivery plan will cover agriculture, marine, land reform, transport, housing, social justice, population challenges, rural skills, digital connectivity, economic development, and health and social care. It is quite wide ranging in taking cognisance of all those issues.

In my opening remarks, I acknowledged that organisations that are based in their communities, such as local councils, know what the local issues are. Those issues will vary, depending on the area, the landscape and the different demographics. We know that the skills, knowledge and expertise are there. We are all aware that, when communities are up against it—for example, when they face adverse weather conditions—people rally round, the support kicks in and we see people at their best.

However, I take on board what you say about the fact that the opportunity for more collaborative work to be done is not embedded when it should be. The Scottish Government encourages and supports the taking of a collaborative approach, although we must remember that councils are autonomous. We work in collaboration with them.

The public sector equality duty is in my portfolio, and the committee will be aware that, as part of that work, I am doing my absolute best to make sure that we set an expectation that councils fulfil their duties. As part of fulfilling their duties, they must work in collaboration with third sector organisations that are procured to provide particular services. Everybody needs to talk to one another. In its report, the SHRC encourages that, and we support those calls.

More widely, on 19 June 2025, the Scottish Government published “Scotland’s Public Service Reform Strategy”, in which we set out the detail of our vision and our priorities for reform. As set out in this year’s programme for government, we will publish a blueprint for community decision making by the end of this session of Parliament, which is not too far away. That should help to shape a different democratic future in which communities are further empowered to make more decisions for themselves. It is also worth noting that the Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill, which was introduced in March, is currently going through stage 1 of the parliamentary scrutiny process, which is being led by the Economy and Fair Work Committee.

Therefore, we are providing leadership and leading by example. We are also reminding public bodies about and reinforcing the importance of the equality duties that everybody has. In addition to the legislation that is in progress, there is the public service reform strategy.

The most important voice for measuring success is always the people’s voice. I have always said that a good model to follow is to triangulate everything with lived experience and to make sure that people’s actual experiences match the data and the strategies. That enables progress to be tracked.

People’s lived experiences are extremely important, and they need to be checked against the data. Those experiences might be based on perception, which is equally important. Sometimes, with certain communities, we might be looking at very small cohorts of people, so there needs to be a checking process. I always think that the best model is one in which the policy and the statistical data analysis that goes with it are cross-referenced with lived experience.

I am aware that we do regular surveys, so we might be able to provide some more information on that. I am aware that the Government carries out surveys on rural and island communities in particular. We check in to find out whether there have been any improvements and to hear about people’s experiences.

Is there anything that you wish to add, Anna?

It is important that people work across portfolios. I recognise that there are challenges, and I agree that one size does not and cannot fit all. I have visited projects from Dumfries to Harris, to speak to people and to hear about their real-life experiences, which has been highly informative.

However, I do not agree that the system is broken. I would characterise it as facing profound challenges, the impacts of which can be significant; I do not accept that it is broken.

In relation to the significant challenges that are faced, we have produced the rural delivery plan and the national islands plan. Some people have asked, “Why have two plans? Why not put everything in one plan?” The fact that we have two plans answers your question. It demonstrates that the issues that are faced in the Highlands and Islands can be very different from those that are experienced in rural areas such as Dumfries and Galloway. Although there are similarities, there will be differences—for instance, with the workforce, as well as in relation to access to transport, health and housing. There will be challenges with procurement and with the transportation of people and goods, which can cost a lot more. There are different modes of transport to think about, too—planes and ferries, as well as railways. I accept that the situation is different for everybody.

Like any organisation that has many different departments, the Government will always find it challenging to get people to work together, but I am confident that we are leading by example. Because cabinet secretaries and ministers are working together across portfolios, officials are doing that, too. For example, Trevor Owen is from my human rights portfolio, but Anna Densham covers rural matters and the Highlands and Islands area. Such cross-working already happens.

As you rightly say, when so many different elements rely on one another, there is a challenge in knowing which one should come first. Should it be transport, housing or jobs? The answer is that we need all of those. That is why, when we have strategic plans, they cover all those areas, which is why it is always very challenging to give quick, glib answers. I would love to be able to say, “This’ll fix it,” but even the people who have contributed to your inquiry recognise that it is a complex picture and that everything is interrelated. It takes time to produce systemic plans and to do that well and, over that time, other pressures emerge. I have mentioned the fact that, unfortunately, decisions that are made elsewhere can have an impact on progress.

I understand that people will always ask us to go faster, but I can assure you that that work is on-going.

You make a good point and, as I have said, I share your frustration. I can assure the committee that cross-portfolio and collaborative working is happening, but you will recognise the challenges of the multiple areas that are involved. Of the two plans, one is statutory, of course, but I will bring in Anna Densham to go into the technical detail of both.