The next questions come from Mark Ruskell.

Item 2 is an evidence session for our inquiry into a modern and sustainable ferry service for Scotland. Members have received briefing papers from the clerks and the Scottish Parliament information centre.

This is the third evidence session in our inquiry into Scotland’s ferry services. We are joined by business, enterprise and tourism representatives, who will share their views on ferry services: Peter Clark, deputy director of industry at the Scotch Whisky Association; Rob Dickson, director of industry and destination development at VisitScotland; and Martin Johnson, director of strategy and regional economy at Highlands and Islands Enterprise, who joins us remotely. Thank you for accepting our invitation to speak to us; we are delighted to have you here.

We have a list of members who want to ask questions, and I will start with an easy question. I will ask each witness the same question, so you will have a moment to consider your answers—except for Peter Clark, who I ask to answer first. Are our ferry services working for the industries and people you represent?

Martin Johnson is trying to get in.

Basically, there is huge pressure to get this right as soon as possible, and industries will respond to and pick up from that, but the longer the situation goes on, the more difficult it will be for those industries to survive.

That is probably a good point at which to end. I thank Peter Clark, Rob Dickson and Martin Johnson for their answers, which have been interesting. Time has flown, as it does when you are having fun and are interested in a subject.

Yesterday, we heard concern that, if new businesses came along, they would not be able to use the facilities because of the restrictions that are placed on use of facilities by current users. I do not know whether that is a problem, but we can find out.

Rob, I will paraphrase you. You said at the beginning that people do not get over a bad ferry experience quickly. A lot of people out there might have had bad experiences in the past few years. Yesterday, we heard that it will take a long time for people to get over that. How long do you think that it will take?

To build on what Liam Kerr asked about, we heard yesterday that a lot of island businesses rely on external contractors to come in and do work. They load up their vans the night before, turn up at the port in the morning to find that there is no boat and then find at the back-end of the day that the boat has been shut down because of weather conditions. People suggested that some businesses are no longer prepared to work on islands because they cannot guarantee a full day’s work and because the costs of working there are prohibitive.

Are Peter Clark and Martin Johnson hearing that from the people they represent? What are the effects on business? In the businesses that you represent, people cannot have all their own specialist skills to meet all their requirements.

Rob, do you think that the ability to flex up and down in order to meet demand and to ensure that boats are not running half full is the way forward and will allow more maintenance?

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the 28th meeting in 2022 of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee.

Agenda item 1 is to decide whether to take agenda items 9 and 10 in private. Under agenda item 9, the committee will consider the evidence that it will hear under agenda item 6, and under agenda item 10, the committee will consider a draft letter to the Scottish Government on our pre-budget scrutiny.

Is the committee content to take those items in private?

Members indicated agreement.

Agenda item 2 is consideration of a draft Scottish statutory instrument. I welcome to the meeting Jenny Gilruth, the Minister for Transport—thank you for making yourself available, minister—and her officials: Elise McIntyre, principal legal officer, Scottish Government legal directorate, and Donald Morrison, head of asset management and procurement, Transport Scotland.

As the instrument has been laid under the affirmative procedure, the Parliament must approve—[Interruption.] It is very dangerous if somebody else can mute the convener, as just happened—it is not something that I want to continue in future.

Let me try that bit again. As the instrument has been laid under the affirmative procedure, the Parliament must approve it before it can come into force. Following this evidence-taking session, the committee will be invited under the next agenda item to consider a motion to approve the instrument. I remind everyone that officials can speak under this item but will not be able to speak in the debate that follows.

I invite the minister to make a short opening statement. Minister, I can mute your microphone if you go on too long—but, of course, I would not do that.

Sorry, minister, can I push slightly on that? Are you thinking that, if there need to be hearings, those will be done locally by councils? I am just thinking about the Highland Council area. The council could, for example, put in an exemption order to cover the whole thing, which covers Wick to Skye to Inverness to Aviemore.