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I will certainly put that to the Government.

Cabinet secretary, I have a question. You may have been listening when I said to Emma Congreve that I would ask about something that came up with the first witness panel. It is good to hear that progress is being made and you have acknowledged that there are gaps and cracks that must be looked at and addressed, but I find it shocking for any Government nowadays to have no accountability.

I am not saying that the Government has no direct accountability—of course it does—but we hear organisations and witnesses asking about that. We heard earlier that large sums of money leave the Scottish Government, which means that sufficient evaluation is needed, but Emma told us earlier that she does not know who is accountable. Money goes out from the Scottish Government and into local authorities and may go on from there into the private sector or into charitable or other organisations. Where does the accountability lie? Where is the leadership and transparency?

That was going to be my last question. Will you follow up to see where the comments have come from and why they are being made, from top to bottom, to see what is happening, where it is happening and where the cracks are appearing?

My question might have been answered, so you might be lucky, but it would be good to hear a little bit more about it.

Last week, we had a private meeting at which people from the whole family equality project spoke about money being wasted year after year because no multiyear budgeting was in place. The organisation said that, sometimes, when money is given out to a programme, it takes a whole year to get familiar with the programme, set it up and work at it and then, before you know it, in the second year, the money disappears.

It was highlighted that we should ask you about that, cabinet secretary. Do you agree that we need to have multiyear budget settlements? I think that I heard you say earlier that you are implementing multiyear budgeting. Is that right? Could you tell me a little more about that?

Thank you very much.

I take what you have just said, Allan, as a positive that the committee has been doing good work.

Last week’s meeting was very interactive, and I found it very productive—I am sure that other colleagues have talked about it, too. We enjoyed listening to people’s real-life experiences as well as those of people who are working on the ground. All committees should definitely go out and hear people’s real-life experiences; after all, we just sit in this building, making laws and policy. Although there is consultation, last week’s meeting showed how important it is to hear about real life.

Something that was highlighted last week and which has been talked about many times today is the issue of accountability. One particular point was that the Scottish Government gives out money for programmes; the people leading those programmes might not be qualified or have the experience, but they are given large sums of money, with no accountability and transparency. I have heard today about a lack of transparency; about the fact that it is very difficult to follow the money and find out how it is allocated and spent; and about a process failure and a lack of accountability. Who is accountable when it comes to finding out whether progress is being made over time and where the money from Government to councils is being used?

The scenario that I have set out is one that people told us about last week. They said that, when the money that is given out goes down the chain, the project managers who are put in place do not have the experience. Nonetheless, they are given these very large sums of money to run those programmes. Allan, you mentioned accountability from Government to council, and it would be good to hear your views on how accountability in programmes can improve. What more can the committee do? We have heard about the good work that we are already doing, but could we do more? Could we ask the minister and cabinet secretary the right questions when they are here later? What would you want us to ask them when it comes to accountability from the top right down to the bottom so that we ensure that that golden thread is there?

Thank you for clarifying that.

You said at the beginning that progress has been made. However, we have highlighted quite a lot of issues today, which we also spoke about last week in our private session. The system is clearly broken somewhere; there are cracks in the system that the Government needs to look at. That is why we are scrutinising the issue today—otherwise, we would not be here.

Today, we have heard that there are numerous issues with connections and accountability. It is for the Government to ensure that the leadership is there, but, as we have heard, that should flow right down to the councils. In what areas has progress been made with the Government? What is being done wrong? If the Government has made progress, why are we scrutinising the situation?

Good morning. Minister, on 25 February, you said in response to one of my questions:

“My role is not to make ministers’ decisions for them but to highlight those intersectionalities, to get them talking to one other and, more important, to get them to do that prior to making any decisions. That is the change of approach. I assure the committee that I am robustly challenging my colleagues to consider those things, to come out of our silos and to move towards that outcome rather than outcomes that are based on portfolios.”—[Official Report, Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee, 25 February 2025; c 6.]

Has there been any progress on that and are ministers talking to one another to achieve the best possible outcomes? As we know, women are often faced with disadvantages when it comes to employment, which are often made worse by an unequal burden of family responsibilities. How are ministers working together to ensure that women are not placed at a disadvantage, especially when it comes to employment?

I also want to highlight some of the evidence that we took earlier. People commented that there is a lack of connections; that things do not feed into wider budgets; that some areas of human rights are understood and some are not; that things are not followed through in how resources are allocated; that greater connections and clarity are needed; and that people cannot follow the money and wonder what is being spent.

It is clear that those are issues, and the Scottish Government cannot ignore the cracks that are showing in the system. It is good that we have you here today to provide evidence on what you have been doing since 25 February, and what work you are doing on women being at a disadvantage, especially when it comes to employment. Last but not least—perhaps the cabinet secretary would like to answer this question—what would you say about the comments that were made today, especially about connectivity? I know that the cabinet secretary mentioned that silo work is still happening and that there is still more work to be done. It would be good to hear your response to the comments that we heard earlier.

Over to you first, minister.

Thank you. Cabinet secretary?