4. To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to assist people in the oil and gas industry who are facing redundancy. (S5O-00723)

The Scottish Government has done everything it can to minimise redundancies in the oil and gas industry. Where this has not been possible, we have supported affected employees through our initiative for responding to redundancy situations, partnership action for continuing employment—PACE. It has focused significant efforts in the north-east, with four large events attended by around 3,500 people. A fifth employee support event will take place in Aberdeen on 29 March.

Furthermore, the energy jobs task force has brought together key partners to maximise employment opportunities; and we have set up a £12 million transition training fund that has, so far, enabled more than 1,600 former oil and gas workers to receive support for training. Training programmes procured by the fund will look to create 755 employment opportunities through two procurement rounds. The fund is also supporting 12 individuals to retrain as teachers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects in the north-east.

I recently found evidence that many companies are not even considering giving interviews to applicants who have come from an oil and gas background. Since I revealed that evidence publicly, I have been inundated with emails from constituents and workers all over Scotland who say that they have felt discriminated against. I contacted the United Kingdom employment secretary about the issue more than a month ago and I have had no response to my request for guidance and action. Will the Minister outline the Scottish Government’s response to the issue, which is affecting many skilled people who genuinely wish to move into other sectors for employment?

It is deeply concerning to hear reports that people are being discriminated against and it is absolutely right that Gillian Martin has raised the issue with UK Government ministers who have responsibility in this area. While not entirely surprised, I am disappointed that Gillian Martin has not yet received a response to her correspondence, but if she is willing to get permission from those who provided the information to share it with me, I undertake to take up the issue with my colleague Jamie Hepburn and UK ministers.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to promoting fair work practices throughout Scotland and we will continue to lobby the UK Government for the full set of powers around employment law so that, regardless of party, the Scottish Parliament can adopt a more proactive role in addressing the kind of issues that Gillian Martin has raised on behalf of her constituents.

The Minister will know that John McDonald, the interim chief executive of the Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation, gave evidence to the Scottish Affairs Committee last week in Aberdeen about the Scottish Government’s approach to the apprenticeship levy in relation to the oil and gas industry. He raised concerns that the unintended consequence of the Scottish Government’s approach might be to incentivise oil companies to conduct training in England rather than in Scotland because of the different ways in which the levy will apply. Given his evidence and his call for a rethink by the Scottish Government, will the minister give an undertaking to carry out such a rethink?

First, I put on record our concern—which I know my colleague Jamie Hepburn has mentioned in the chamber a number of times—that we were not consulted on the imposition of the apprenticeship levy, which clearly has a big impact on major employers in Scotland. There was a fundamental failure on the part of the UK Government to engage with the Scottish Government on its responsibilities.

I take on board the member’s serious point that we have to make sure that we have sufficient training support for oil and gas employers. I know that there has been good engagement between Mr Hepburn and OPITO, but I will continue to have dialogue myself with OPITO and Mr Hepburn on how we can ensure that the training packages that are available to the oil and gas industry are as good as they can be.

I also point out that the funding that came with the apprenticeship levy announcement merely replaced funding in the block grant. We are concerned that it is not new funding, which shows again why it was such a failure on the part of the UK Government not to consult the Scottish Government in the first place.