Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 20 April 2022.
Alexander Burnett
Conservative
The finance secretary recently wrote to the Economy and Fair Work Committee, stating that the Scottish Government has
“delivered”— delivered!—its
“commitment to ensure that every home and business could access superfast broadband by the end of 2021.”
It is utterly ludicrous to expect people to believe that after the Government failed to meet its own targets and delayed the R100 roll-out by six years. Certainly, thousands of those in Aberdeenshire who are without a reliable broadband connection will not fall for that.
In an answer to me, the finance secretary confirmed that only 15 per cent of the £3.3 million for the voucher scheme has been handed out, and less than 0.5 per cent of eligible properties in the north-east have made applications. Will the Minister commit to extending the scheme so that the remaining 85 per cent of the funding goes to those who need it?
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
