Finance Committee, 27 Feb 2001

Meeting date: Tuesday, February 27, 2001

Official Report 182KB pdf

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Financial Resolutions

The clerk has prepared a financial resolutions update paper. On a number of occasions we have discussed an amendment to standing orders on this matter. The committee is still considering the financial resolutions for bills and we felt that it would be much more useful if the individual subject committees were to do that. I would like to know whether members are content with the proposal in the paper.

You will note that there is an issue relating to committee bills. Committee bill procedure is slightly different from that for Executive bills, in that there is no stage 1 report with accompanying financial resolution. The suggestion is that, for committee bills, the financial resolution should come to this committee.

I do not want to upset the apple cart, but I think that some progress has been made with the additional memorandum that has recently been made available to give us more information. That is a facility that I would not want the Finance Committee to lose.

The only specific point that I want to make concerns rule 9.12.5 and the proposed revision to rule 9.6.3. Will we continue to see the financial memorandum and will we still have the opportunity to comment to the lead committee? According to the paper, rule 9.6.3 should be revised to read:

"The lead committee shall also consider and report on the Bill's Financial Memorandum and shall, in preparing its report, take into account any views submitted to it by the Finance Committee."

My question concerns the capacity in which we are to give those "any views". Do we have a formal discussion at the committee, or is it just something that we should keep an eye on? I would like the opportunity to get the sort of information that we have had from the Executive so far on a future housing or student finance bill, for example. How will that work?

I am not sure. The intention is that the Finance Committee should be able, where it wishes, to call in and look at financial resolutions.

Let me use the Housing (Scotland) Bill as an example. The intention is that, in future, the subject committee—the Social Justice Committee—will be responsible for teasing out some of the issues that the Finance Committee is trying to tease out in respect of that bill. As far as the suggested revised standing order is concerned, it would be up to the clerks to ensure that members are informed about when Executive bills or members' bills were being introduced and about the details of the stage 1 timetable. It would then be for members to suggest to the convener that the committee should specifically consider a bill and, if necessary, take evidence, before reporting to the lead committee in question. That would be the mechanism by which this committee would make its views known.

Does that answer your point, Andrew?

Yes.

I take on board what Callum Thomson has said, but if the sort of principle on which we operate is similar to the budget principle, I wonder whether that would be helpful. On the budget, the subject committees have been allowed to propose movements in their own areas of funding. If the financial memorandum proposes to meet that cost from within the general budget of that department, the subject committees would be better able to comment on that.

On the other hand, if a major shift of budget is involved, either from the reserve or another department—as with some of the major expenditure commitments, such as implementation of the Sutherland recommendations—it would not be appropriate for that to be a matter solely for the Health and Community Care Committee. Without imposing those principles, perhaps it would be helpful to include an addendum saying that that might be a principle on which we would generally operate if members felt that it was appropriate.

That sounds like a sensible guideline for consideration of the financial memorandum. I take it that, with the inclusion of those additional comments, the committee agrees to the financial resolutions paper.

Members indicated agreement.