European and External Relations Committee, 08 Jan 2008

Meeting date: Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Official Report 219KB pdf

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Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland

Item 3 is to consider a paper from the clerk on the fresh talent: working in Scotland scheme, which is part of the previous Scottish Government's—if I can say "Government" retrospectively—fresh talent initiative. If there are no comments, are we content to write to the minister as is set out in paragraph 14 of the paper?

I have a suggestion for a third bullet point in paragraph 14: we should find out whether there have been further developments on the possible employment of asylum seekers. That seems also to be relevant to the Scottish economy.

Where would you like to put that in?

It would be a third bullet point. Paragraph 5 of the paper says that the report that was prepared by the European and External Relations Committee in 2005

"recommended that the Scottish Executive report to the Committee the views it has expressed to the Home Office on the new points-based immigration system and pursue with the Home Office the case for asylum seekers' employment opportunities."

We might as well roll all that into the one thing.

Are members happy with that?

Members indicated agreement.

Okay—that is not a problem.