Chamber and committees

What would be the average time to do deal with one of those cases?

I mean the number of reviews of decisions on crisis grants, including applications being rejected by local authorities.

That is very helpful. When we hear public bodies saying, “Lessons will be learned,” most of us think that they are learned only until the next scandal or the next issue. Whether your recommendations are followed up is really important. Has that follow-up work not been possible over the past two years because of Covid?

Those of us who support constituents have to manage expectations sometimes, as well.

My final question is on helping vulnerable people through, specifically, the Scottish welfare fund. I know that you have looked at a number of cases regarding people applying for various grants, including crisis grants. Can you tell me about the number of cases that have been coming to you for review?

Good morning, panel. I am not sure whether my microphone is on. [Interruption.] It is. Sorry.

The previous ombudsman told the predecessor local government committee that some public bodies ignored the SPSO’s recommendations or delayed in responding. Is that still the case?

That is helpful. We have been hearing about that in different contexts, such as in planning departments, in the work that we have been doing.

I want to move on to a question about why many of the cases that are escalated to the SPSO are then subsequently closed by you, with the conclusion that they had been well handled by the public body. I believe that 908 cases were closed for that reason in 2021. What route would you recommend to complainants who feel that the door has been closed on their concerns?

That is helpful. Have you seen the increase because people have been asked to provide evidence through email, for example, or have not been able to get hold of documents from their general practitioner, because they have not been able to see them?

That will depend on what you say.

I thank the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee for its work. I am glad to speak in the debate, and I welcome the positive progress that is being made in extending candidacy rights to eligible citizens from Poland, Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg. Although the bill might not be generating headlines, it is an important piece of legislation.

The United Kingdom Elections Bill as drafted is designed to clarify the voting and candidacy rights of key groups of citizens in this country. It is important to note that European Union nationals who were resident in the United Kingdom before 31 December fall into the category of having retained rights and are fully eligible to stand as candidates and vote in elections. The bill that we are considering today simply aims to expand candidacy rights to include people from named countries with any type of leave to remain in the United Kingdom as well as those with settled or pre-settled status.

It is reassuring to note, as others have done, that neither the Electoral Commission nor the Electoral Management Board for Scotland has expressed any particular concern about the bill. I note from Mr Adam’s response on the bill to the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee that the Scottish Government will reflect on an amendment to the bill that would give greater clarity to the Scottish Government’s obligation to remove a country from the schedule. I think that Mr Adam suggested in his opening speech that he will lodge an amendment on that at stage 2.

As others have outlined, the council elections are an important opportunity to refresh our democracy. I hope that they will also be an opportunity to elect more diverse councils that better reflect their local communities. For example, a record number of female and black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates will stand for my party at the election. Across the chamber, all parties have taken positive steps to try to improve candidate diversity at the election. The Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee, of which I am a member, will undertake additional work in that area after the council elections to review the impact of the election results.

For the millions or hundreds of thousands of people who, I am sure, will be watching this debate, there are now just under 24 hours until 4 pm tomorrow to submit their nomination papers. I genuinely hope that people who want change in their local community will do just that and stand for election, as all of us have done, to make the positive change that they want.

The minister suggested that a wider election bill is likely to be forthcoming, which will be consulted on. I hope that we will see a number of reforms in that. I think that councillor remuneration is an issue. The Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee has heard that a number of councillors have decided to stand down at the forthcoming elections for career reasons.

We also need measures on the support that is available to councillors to serve their local constituents. We MSPs are lucky to have the support that we have for staff and communications, but councillors have very different support available to them. I hope that that can be reformed, too, and that support will not just be based on whether a council decides to provide it.

I have previously raised with the minister the idea that we need to consider the provision to councillors of a free mail election address, which MPs and MSPs are entitled to, especially given the current size of single transferable vote wards and, potentially, larger wards after Boundaries Scotland undertakes its review after the council elections. I hope that all parties will reflect on bringing that forward.

Overall, however, the bill is a measured and uncontroversial step. The extension of the franchise is limited to nationals of the handful of countries with which the UK has signed reciprocal agreements. We will therefore support the bill at decision time, and will welcome future such agreements that the UK Government may reach with other countries. The bill seeks to bring Scottish legislation into line with the nationwide UK law. That is a welcome step forward.

I do not have time at the moment.

New pressures on the cost of living, aggravated by the effects of successive lockdowns and the pandemic, such as rising food and fuel costs, now threaten to leave even more families impacted by, and living in, poverty. In 2019, 26 per cent of all children in Scotland were in relative poverty. In Glasgow, the number was as high as 32 per cent.

The Scottish child payment, which the Trussell Trust has identified as one of the forms of support that is most effective at addressing financial hardship, is welcome. Scottish Conservatives supported calls to double the payment, and I welcome the action that we have seen, as that targeted support is very important. However, our local authorities are often at the heart of action to support vulnerable families and have a critical role to play in helping to eliminate child poverty.