Glasgow Airport Rail Link Bill Committee,
Meeting date: Monday, May 22, 2006
Official Report
392KB pdf
Assessor
Agenda item 2 concerns the appointment of an assessor at consideration stage of the bill. I should inform members of the public who might not be aware of the Parliament's processes that we are discussing the matter today because we have several procedural hurdles to get over before Parliament can take any decision on the bill. For a start, we need to appoint an assessor to take the bill, if its general principles are agreed to, through to consideration stage. The assessor will then report back to the committee.
Are members content to ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body to appoint an assessor to consider and report to the committee at consideration stage? Moreover, do members agree that we will ask the assessor to report in the way that is identified in paragraph 2 of paper GARL/S2/06/6/11 and that a report on any evidence that is given to the assessor and recommendations as appropriate be given to the committee?
Members indicated agreement.
I make it abundantly clear that that decision does not pre-empt our preliminary stage report or the Parliament's verdict on our recommendation on whether the bill should proceed. We are simply keeping up with the Parliament's processes.
I point out to the promoter and the objectors that the timetable for providing future evidence at consideration stage would be extremely tight. For example, it is likely that further written evidence would be sought from objectors in very early July and early August, and from the promoter in mid-July. The committee clerks have already alerted parties to those possible dates. Any oral evidence at consideration stage is likely to be taken at the very end of August and the beginning of September. I hope that that makes it clear that our earlier decision to appoint an assessor does not pre-empt any decision on the bill made either by us or by the Parliament. These matters simply need to be clarified and set in train—if you will excuse the pun—to ensure that we make progress.