Chamber and committees

I do not want to put words in your mouth, but I think that you are saying that you are content that you are moving in the right direction but there is still more to do.

At the heart of the committee’s report is a recognition that, if we want to tackle child poverty through parental employment, a wide range of interventions needs to be available, because we cannot focus on just one. As Bob Doris said, Dumfries and Galloway Council covered that issue very well in its submission to the committee, in which it said:

“There is no single thing which could be prioritised ... The approach must be considered as a whole system approach not separate policies or interventions.”

Therefore, we need to look at a wide range of interventions in relation to access to childcare, transport, training and education.

As I read the report, which discusses what more could be done in each area, I found myself wondering what is being done in Aberdeen. After all, when my SNP colleagues won control of Aberdeen City Council, they spoke about how they wanted to make Aberdeen a better place to grow up in, and I know that work is being done across the city to make that a reality.

The report states:

“Flexible childcare was a priority for participants of the Committee’s focus group and visits.”

I saw a fantastic example of flexible childcare recently, when I visited Cummings Park nursery in my Aberdeen Donside constituency—where, if they need to, folk can book spaces on an hourly basis rather than on a day rate. I met the nursery’s hard-working team along with Susan McGhee, the chief executive of Flexible Childcare Services Scotland. The new home of Cummings Park nursery is absolutely amazing. It provides a great environment for our young people to learn and grow.

Given that the report looks at education and training provision, I found myself thinking of the work that is done by ABZ Works, Aberdeen City Council’s employability and skills service. That initiative was launched in 2021. It helps parents and carers across Aberdeen to access the Scottish Government’s parental employability support fund. The support that ABZ Works can offer to parents now includes free training and funding; certified training courses; coaching to build digital skills; help to find childcare; and financial support to ease the transition into employment. That is a fantastic example of what can be done when Aberdeen City Council works with the Scottish Government to the benefit of the many folk who call our city home.

To take childcare provision and education together, I was saddened, recently, to hear from a constituent who was struggling to access the UK Government’s tax-free childcare scheme. They found out that, if they went to university, their household would lose its entitlement to tax-free childcare. Without saying what that course is—so as not to identify my constituent—I can say that it is particularly demanding and that its graduates are particularly in demand.

The value to that household of a year of tax-free childcare could be thousands of pounds. That could make the difference between my constituent deciding to go to university this September or waiting until their child is old enough to qualify for the Scottish Government’s 1,140 hours of free childcare.

Although tax-free childcare currently sits under His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, that policy has knock-on implications across a range of devolved policy areas, including early years and higher education, and for the sector that my constituent would seek to work in after their degree. Although tax-free childcare is not explicitly mentioned in the report, my constituent’s situation is an example of why we need a whole-system approach.

The report goes on to discuss public transport provision. Aberdeen is said to have the highest rate of car ownership of any city in the UK. That says something, probably, about the need for improved public transport in the city and about the challenges that are associated with realising that. Through a combination of the expansion of free bus travel and bus prioritisation—supported by over £10 million of Scottish Government funding, which I commend Douglas Lumsden on applying for during his time as the council’s finance convener—things are slowly starting to get better.

However more—something bigger—needs to be done. That is exactly what I am hoping will be delivered in the coming years. In particular, I am keen for Aberdeen rapid transit to roll out across our city: a city-wide mass transit system that could help to improve the timing, frequency and reliability of public transport in Aberdeen—which, in turn, could and should unlock employment opportunities and provide a lever for reducing child poverty.

I have not had time to touch on a lot that is in the report, but I will finish by focusing quickly on the success of the work that has been done in recent years. The report mentions modelling that suggested that,

“without ... the impact of Scottish Government policies, ... child poverty might be around 28% this year”—

as John Swinney said. That is significantly more than the estimate of 19 per cent, which is still too high.

A range of decisions by the Parliament, not least to implement and increase the Scottish child payment, is making a real difference. More needs to be done. As the report highlights, that spans a wide range in Government, from early years to higher and further education, transport, fair work, social security and local government. I am confident that Scotland is moving in the right direction. That is certainly helped by the strong desire, across the chamber and the nation, to give the next and future generations the best possible start in life.

I take it from your response that you have seen and read the draft Scottish national adaptation plan, which my next question was going to come on to. Are you saying that its content helps to address the recommendations from your 2023 report? If so, should adaptation be given greater priority? I probably know the answer to that question, but I will ask it anyway.

Thank you, convener, and good morning, Auditor General. You have emphasised the need for greater priority to be given to climate change adaptation planning and risk management. In a statement to the Public Audit Committee, you said that there should be parity between emissions reduction and adaptation planning. Is that parity in terms of investment and resources or in terms of the approach taken to risk management?

While the Scottish Government continues to do what it can with its limited powers to ensure that folk receive the help that they need during this Tory cost of living crisis, what assessment has been made of the potential long-term impact on jobs and on folk’s energy bills of Labour’s aggressive windfall tax plans for the North Sea, coupled with Keir Starmer abandoning his £28 billion green investment pledge?

How do you expect to engage in the legislative development of the proposed natural environment bill? I would be interested to hear your views on what the priorities of the bill should be.

Do you have the expertise in-house just now, or would you have to go further afield?

Thank you.

I realise that I was asking a crystal ball question—asking you to look into the future—so I appreciate that answer.

I want to go back to what Bettina said earlier about the industry agreeing the reimbursement rates. Did the industry raise any concerns on that, or was there total agreement?