Finance Committee, 24 Apr 2001
Meeting date: Tuesday, April 24, 2001
Official Report
122KB pdf
Scottish Parliament Finance Committee Tuesday 24 April 2001 (Morning)
[The Convener opened the meeting at 10:03]
Good morning, colleagues. I call this meeting of the Finance Committee to order. As usual, please ensure that all pagers are switched to vibrate and that all mobile phones are switched off.
I intimate apologies from Elaine Thomson, who is on a visit with the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Committee. One of our advisers, Brian Ashcroft, is suffering from flu. Judging from the way I feel today, I might be about to join him.
Before I start the meeting, I want to put on the record the fact that in yesterday's editions of The Scotsman and The Herald, which members may have seen, the leader of the Scottish National Party said that he was going to write to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Stephen Byers, to invite him to appear before the Finance Committee. That was kind of John Swinney, but he seems to have omitted to note that he ceased to be a member of the Finance Committee more than six months ago. Only the committee can issue such invitations and I shall write to Mr Swinney to point that out.
I invite members to agree that we should take agenda items 6 and 7 in private.
Members indicated agreement.