Background to the Committee's inquiry
The Committee has had an ongoing interest in BiFab, the offshore wind sector and Scottish supply chain throughout this parliamentary session. In March 2019, the Committee received a joint letter from the GMB and Unite unions asking it to "investigate the position of Scotland in relation to winning largescale work for the offshore renewables industry".Joint letter from GMB and Unite to the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee (EEFW), 7 March 2019 The First Minister also indicated that she supported this call by the unions for the Scottish Parliament to conduct an inquiry into these matters.Letter from the Scottish Government to GMB Scotland and Unite the Union, 9 March 2019
Following these communications, the Committee held a roundtable discussion with BiFab directors, the trade unions, the enterprise agencies, ORE Catapult and Scottish Renewables on 23 April 2019.