Education, Lifelong Learning and Culture Committee

Meeting date: Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Official Report 531KB pdf

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Subordinate Legislation

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Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 (Consequential Provision) and Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc (Scotland) Act 2003 (Amendment of Specified Authorities) Order 2011 (Draft)

Good morning. I open the sixth meeting in 2011 of the Education, Lifelong Learning and Culture Committee. I remind everyone that all mobile phones and electronic devices should be switched off for the duration of the meeting. We have received no apologies.

I am pleased to welcome Adam Ingram, Minister for Children and Early Years. He is joined by Kit Wyeth, who is head of the children’s hearings reform team in the Scottish Government. This must be your first visit to the committee this year, minister.

Yes, it is.

I am sure that you have missed us. We have missed you. I invite you to make brief opening remarks.

It does not seem very long ago that I was here to discuss the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Bill. I hope that today’s discussion will not be as long as some of our discussions on the bill.

The draft affirmative order that the committee is considering will, if it is approved, ensure that the national convener and children’s hearings Scotland are subject to well-established statutory regimes, in the same way as similar public office-holders and public bodies are. The amendment that article 2 will make to the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 will enable the Scottish ministers to cause an inquiry to be held into the carrying out of the national convener’s functions. Such a power already covers the principal reporter and others, and it is right that the national convener should also be covered.

Article 3 will ensure that the appointment of board members to children’s hearings Scotland will be covered by the code of practice that is issued by the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland, who governs that type of appointment. It is appropriate that children’s hearings Scotland, as a public body, is covered by those provisions.

I invite the committee to approve the order.

What will be the overall, lasting effect of the order? You explained what it will do, but will it help to improve standards?

The power to cause an inquiry to be held would be used only if fairly controversial things were happening in relation to the national convener’s role. The committee and I have discussed what would happen if there were concerns about how the national convener was going about his or her job, to the extent that some form of inquiry was needed to satisfy people’s concerns. As far as I am aware, such an approach has not been used—that is certainly the case in relation to the principal reporter’s function. The provision offers a fall-back approach or safety net, whereby the Parliament and ministers can address issues in a formal way. I hope that such a situation will not arise.

If there are no comments from members, I invite the minister to move the motion. I remind members that we have up to 90 minutes to debate the motion, if it is necessary or appropriate to do so.

Motion moved,

That the Education, Lifelong Learning and Culture Committee recommends that the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 (Consequential Provision) and Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc. (Scotland) Act 2003 (Amendment of Specified Authorities) Order be approved.—[Adam Ingram.]

Motion agreed to.

I thank Mr Ingram and Kit Wyeth for attending the meeting.

10:05 Meeting suspended.

10:06 On resuming—