European and External Relations Committee, 13 Nov 2007
Meeting date: Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Official Report
197KB pdf
Scottish Government European Union Priorities
The second agenda item is correspondence from the Minister for Europe, External Affairs and Culture on the Government's EU priorities. Following receipt of the correspondence, we had the debate last week, which was helpful.
On 2 October, the committee agreed certain follow-up actions on the Government's EU priorities and objectives. In particular, the committee agreed that it would be helpful to have further clarification from the minister on the process by which the EU priorities and objectives will be developed, delivered and measured. Members have the response from the minister. Do you have any comments on it or the clerk's paper that accompanies it?
We should accept the clerk's recommendations.
Is everyone content with the clerk's recommendations?
Members indicated agreement.
I am content with the clerk's recommendations, but I feel that there is an awful lot of civil service speak in the letter and that it does not answer some of the questions that we asked. For example, we asked about the mechanisms by which priorities and objectives will be measured. The key paragraph in the response says:
"With regards to measuring the progress of the EU Priorities and … Objectives, the initial step is for the relevant policy official to keep monitoring the negotiations".
It then says that when the dossier is resolved it is resolved. That does not answer our questions or address what we meant. There are other examples of the letter not answering the questions that we asked. However, we understand that a European strategy is to be published shortly, so I am content to accept the clerk's recommendations and to await that strategy.
The bullet points in paragraph 7 of the clerk's paper flag up other points that were not addressed. Will you take up those issues when you meet officials? Is that the main substance of what you are going to discuss?
Yes. The idea is that we will take forward Irene Oldfather's points and what is mentioned in paragraph 7 in discussion with Scottish Government officials.
Are members content with that?
Members indicated agreement.