Speeches by Murray.

“How confident are you that Ofgem’s proposed debt relief scheme will adequately support households in Scotland that have unmanageable levels of debt? Ms Mander started to touch on that, but would either of you like to expand a little?”

“Are you saying that behavioural change is part of the solution? Do you think that behaviour has been a large part of the cause, or is it just part of an education process?”

“Ms Mander and Mr Johnston, I want to ask about the barriers that are preventing households from reducing their energy debt. Once they are in debt, how do they find it?”

“It seems that with increasing frequency I stand in this place welcoming Labour U-turns, and today I welcome yet another. The decision to lift the two-child cap is clearly the right moral choice, and it will lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. For those in Scotland, this is a particularly welcome chan…”

“I apologise. Removing the two-child cap is a vital step, and I hope that the Government choose to listen to more Liberal Democrat proposals.”

“Not really. I think the question has been answered in the fact that they do not have the figures yet. We will have to give them some time.”

“For full disclosure, I had a very informative visit to BBC Scotland—thank you for that—and I am a huge consumer of BBC radio and of Sounds, as opposed to iPlayer. I do not seem to have enough time for television at the moment. The BBC has recently decided to overhaul “Good Morning Scotland”, the radio programme that is…”

“I note that your expenditure on radio is staying flat, so it will be really interesting to hear what the listening figures are in due course, once you get a chance to get a realistic—”

“What focus and impact do you think the final phase of the strategy will have?”

“Phase 2 of the BBC's “Across the UK” strategy ended last year. How would you judge your performance against your commitments, and how has the strategy affected the BBC’s operations in Scotland?”

“So basically you are saying that we develop Scotland because it is a good business case.”

“Is that benefiting Scottish talent and Scottish viewers, or are we attracting people into the area rather than developing people in Scotland?”

“4. What recent steps he has taken to establish a digital identity system.”

“I welcome the Government’s U-turn on digital identity cards, but they must go further. We are now looking at a largely redundant system that is expected to cost nearly £2 billion. Will the Minister explain why this is the best use of public money and whether he agrees that the resources would be better directed to tack…”

“What contribution can small businesses make to sustaining and revitalising high streets?”

“It has been mentioned in your answers but perhaps we could drill down a little on whether high streets across Scotland are facing the same challenges or there are differences depending on their geography and their location or are any other factors.”

“How do your members feel about BIDs locally?”

“I am the MP for Mid Dunbartonshire where we have Kirkintilloch, which is quite well known for having a town centre redevelopment scheme that was funded by the Scottish Government. All over Mid Dunbartonshire, I am hearing exactly the feedback reflecting the comments that Professor Sparks was making about the environmen…”

“Can I just continue on that theme, Professor Sparks? Since you led the review of Scotland’s town centre action plan in 2021, how much progress do you think has been made on the recommendations?”

“Do you think there is going to be a problem in the future with schemes that cannot be removed because of the way that they are funded as pots of money?”