As we have been considering the bill, I have found myself becoming interested in what brings a police officer or member of staff into the process, whether it is in relation to a complaint against them or an allegation of misconduct. What is it about the demands of the job, the environment or the circumstances that results in them ending up in that conduct space?

Pauline McNeill spoke about a relatively high number of incidents involving allegations of police assault. Given your longevity in the world of justice, I am very interested in your observations on what is pressing down on police officers or staff that puts them in a position where they are facing a complaint or an allegation of misconduct. It is a big question, but I am interested in what the societal factors might be.

That is a comprehensive and helpful opening response.

I would like to stay with the statutory duty of candour that is included in the bill, on which you have set out your views. The Scottish Government has chosen to introduce that duty in the bill, but not a duty of co-operation or a duty to provide the Police Investigation and Review Commissioner with a statutory power to compel officers to attend for interview within a reasonable timescale, as your review recommended. Do you agree with the position that the Government has taken? Is the way in which the duty of candour has been laid out in the bill sufficient to ensure the level of co-operation that would be required to allow investigations to be undertaken and concluded timeously?

It is very welcome that the Scottish Government remains committed to expanding free school meal availability. Can the cabinet secretary provide an update on what assessment the Scottish Government has made of the rate of uptake of free school meals? Can she say any more about what steps can be taken to maximise uptake?

To ask the Scottish Government when the Scottish Funding Council’s subject price groups for higher education were last reviewed. (S6O-03436)

I recently met the principals of the University of Aberdeen and Robert Gordon University and heard about the widening gap between the Scottish Funding Council price allocation and the actual cost or resource that is required to deliver courses and other activities. I am aware that the transparent approach to costing methodology is an attempt to measure that across the United Kingdom, and confirms a gap at aggregate level. I was not aware of any recent analysis in Scotland, but the minister has just clarified when that last happened. Could consideration be given to a fresh analysis of the cost relative to price, on a subject price group basis, for universities, as he set out, to determine whether the funding gap has become more concentrated in specific subject areas?

I welcome the cabinet secretary’s statement. The Covid-19 pandemic saw emergency measures to facilitate the early release of prisoners across Scotland, with public and other local services coming together to manage a multi-agency reintegration and resettlement response. Will the cabinet secretary provide assurance that a similarly co-ordinated and managed approach will be taken and that the process will be closely monitored to ensure that it is as seamless and robust as possible?

Thank you. That leads on quite nicely to another piece of work—I am stepping outside the bill for a moment, but I suppose that it is indirectly relevant.

You will be aware that the Scottish Parliament Finance and Public Administration Committee is doing a piece of work on the commissioner landscape in Scotland, and is taking evidence on the effectiveness of commissioners and their role.

A number of new commissioner posts have been proposed. However, one of the things that the finance committee has been looking at is why we need commissioners in the first place. What is happening or not happening that means that we need them? Are public bodies not fulfilling some of their duties around the conduct of staff or is there perhaps a wider societal issue, such as the cost of living crisis, that is having an impact on the public generally?

That is a really big question but I am interested in your perspective. You have a very demanding commissioner role—there are no doubts about that. Do you have any comment on that wider analysis or the question around the role of commissioners? Do we need them? [Laughter.] I know that you will say yes, and that is absolutely fine.

That is helpful. I must admit that I was unaware of the difference in the threshold in respect of police officers being reported to the Crown. It is helpful to understand that better.

Are you saying that, where more evidence obviously emerges in respect of an individual who has been reported to the Crown in relation to an incident, that would be passed to you for further consideration?

I presume that, once you have a report and have had time to consider it, the Crown Office processes the report in the same way as it processes any other report in terms of the threshold for evidence that is required under Scots law.

As the cabinet secretary noted, we are aware that there will be further LCMs, which the committee will consider.

Are members content to delegate responsibility to me and the clerks to approve a short factual report to the Parliament on the LCMs?

Members indicated agreement.