Under item 1, we are asked to consider whether to take agenda items 5 and 6 in private. Item 5 is our consideration of whether the committee wishes to undertake pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Bill and, if so, what the options are for doing so. Item 6 concerns the arrangements for our away day, at which we will consider the committee's forward work programme. Are we agreed to take items 5 and 6 in private?
No.
Do you want to discuss it, Stewart?
I am not clear whether there is adequate justification for holding the discussion on our away day in private. There is perhaps a case for discussing our approach to the draft bill in private, and I will be interested in the arguments that other members might make. I will not make a big issue of this, but nothing that we are going to discuss is of a nature that needs to be discussed in private. We should consider carefully each such request.
Given that item 5 concerns our approach to pre-legislative scrutiny, it would be useful to take it in private. It has always been my view that the Official Report should not have to record discussions about diary dates and meeting times, for example. At one level, there is no reason why we should not take that kind of practical business in public. However, we do not need to hold in public a discussion that concerns how we match diary dates; such discussions are not about any great issues of principle. I am happy to hear the views of other members. First, let us get item 5 out of the road. Are we agreed to take item 5 in private?
Members indicated agreement.
Are we agreed to take item 6 in private?
I echo what Stewart Stevenson said. There is no need for item 6 to be taken in private. The convener talked about diary dates but, at various times, the Parliament has been told that too many items are taken in private. I have to say that most of our meetings are held in the public domain, and item 6 is not important enough to be taken in private.
As a committee, we take seriously the issue of which items we take in private. I am sure that, if we looked at our record across the board, we would find that we had not spent a lot of our time considering matters in private.
We are agreed that we will take agenda item 5 in private. I suggest that we discuss item 6, on whether to hold an away day, before we go into private session. I will not allow members to discuss diary dates at that time; we will do the housekeeping bit by e-mail after the meeting, through the clerks.
That is a useful proposal, convener.
Are we agreed?
Members indicated agreement.