Speeches by McNally.

“You do not think if you are engaging with stakeholders as part of that wider exercise into PIP assessments that they will not have criticisms of the current eligibility that we are putting in place potentially from next week?”

“I think that is what generates some of the concerns that members have been touching on. I may come back to that in a couple of minutes. On the wider assessment exercise, the Green Paper states, “To make sure we get this right”, which is the critical aspect of this, “we will bring together a range of experts, stakeholde…”

“Good morning, Minister. It is nice to see you and thanks for joining us today. Can I dig a little further into John Milne’s point around the wider PIP review? We know the Green Paper chapter 2, section 2, highlights the level of work that the Department will undertake for the way they do the PIP review. I think that is…”

“A critical aspect of this, and it was touched on earlier, is the mental health crisis that we have now. There is a mental health crisis impacting young people. They are not immune to that. If I look at it in a Scottish context, the British Psychological Society recently highlighted the Scottish Government’s cuts to men…”

“Minister, there is a lot in the Green Paper, as you have just touched on with Danny and through the day, to be welcomed, especially for young people. I think I have been absolutely clear on that. However there has been a concern highlighted to us in evidence from stakeholders around the restriction of UC health to thos…”

“I think that is a fair point, and ultimately I suppose that brings us to a core concern that we have perhaps put the cart before the horse in the sense that we are undertaking or are about to undertake what could be a comprehensive exercise into all aspects of PIP but we will be doing so after making changes to the eli…”

“Good morning. I represent a Scottish constituency, and much of housing is devolved, but we are certainly not immune to the challenges linked to supply. My local authority is Scotland’s largest social landlord. It has the most ambitious programme for house building in Scotland. We still have 14,500 people on a waiting l…”

“I will be brief. I was going to ask you about the consequences and impact of temporary accommodation on claimants, particularly children, but the panel has covered that quite extensively. I certainly recognise the points that have been raised. If I can move on quickly to the ending of silo working, which is a big area …”

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The UK Government are investing significantly in skills and apprenticeships for some of those young people who were impacted by the pandemic, and we need to see that in Scotland as well. For children transitioning from early years to primary 1, and from primary 7 to secondary, it mus…”

“In the time I have available, I will focus on education and care provision during the pandemic. I was serving as North Lanarkshire’s chair of education when the Scottish Government directed the closure of schools in March 2020. Within days, the entire country was locked down, and we moved to home-schooling and virtual …”

“New College Lanarkshire was recently recognised as further education institution of the year at The Herald education awards. Deputy principal Ann Baxter and student Chloe Sandilands were also recognised, winning the lifetime achievement and outstanding contribution categories. Will my right hon. Friend join me in congr…”

“Looking at some of the barriers that could arise from trying to do more in terms of that integrated service, do you see culture being a barrier? I am conscious around the relationships with key stakeholders has perhaps not been as strong as we would like over the last few years. Do you think there is a job to continue …”

“Can I touch on the important relationship with other community and sectoral stakeholders? Certainly through a devolved lens, in the last year we have seen an improvement in the relationship between the Department of Work and Pensions, Jobcentre Plus and Social Security Scotland, which is great to see. As a Committee we…”

“I welcome that answer, Minister. Ultimately, the jobcentre in your pocket is an exciting prospect as well. We should be excited about it, but we need to make sure that the customers are coming with us on that journey to 2028. So yes, it is important that the work coaches have those discussions, but as we shape this ove…”

“Good morning and thank you very much for joining us today. There has been a fair amount of talk this morning about advances in technology and the role that technology will play. That is very much to be welcomed but, of course, it presents a balancing act as well, as I am sure you will appreciate. Some concerns have bee…”

“I am grateful to the Minister for coming to the House tonight and for the steps that have been taken, given the despicable actions of the two Israeli Ministers cited throughout the statement. Of course, more must be done. Does the Minister recognise the UN special rapporteur’s characterisation of Israel’s approach to a…”

“I welcome today’s announcement. It is right that, despite the horrendous financial situation that this Government inherited from the Conservative party, they are reinstating the winter fuel payment for 75% of pensioners and specifically targeting those in the most need. Following the question from my hon. Friend the Me…”

“That is a very fair point. Ultimately, the safeguards are critical. What are your thoughts on what those safeguards need to look like?”

“Thank you very much for joining us and for providing us with the evidence that you have. You just touched on there being multiple pots, Chris. I am going to focus this series of questions on some of the challenges linked to small pots. Obviously, there has been a significant increase since auto-enrolment, and we know t…”

“If surpluses are not returned to the employer, how else should they be used?”