– in the Scottish Parliament at on 6 March 2024.
Richard Leonard
Labour
2. To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to next meet with the sole director of the GFG Alliance. (S6O-03151)
Màiri McAllan
Scottish National Party
The Scottish Government regularly meets senior executives of the GFG Alliance to discuss the group’s business interests in Scotland. A meeting for me with the GFG Alliance’s executive chairman is currently being arranged.
Richard Leonard
Labour
The Cabinet secretary’s predecessor was due to meet Sanjeev Gupta on 25 July last year, but Mr Gupta pulled out. This is a company that the Serious Fraud Office is now investigating for suspected fraud, fraudulent trading and money laundering. According to the Auditor General, this is a company that still does not have auditors, so it has not filed audited accounts with Companies House in recent years. The Auditor General told Parliament that these are “matters of concern” and said that, over the past 12 months, the Government’s liability under the Lochaber guarantee and reimbursement agreement has increased by a further £21 million to £135 million.
Will the cabinet secretary make a full statement to Parliament on the Government’s exposure to risk as a result of its arrangements with Sanjeev Gupta, on what has happened to the promise of downstream production and jobs and, in the interest of transparency—
The Deputy Presiding Officer:
No—Cabinet secretary.
Richard Leonard
Labour
—will the Government finally publish in full—
The Deputy Presiding Officer:
Cabinet secretary.
Màiri McAllan
Scottish National Party
I t is not unusual for meetings that have been arranged to be postponed or rearranged. I have already confirmed that, with the change of portfolio, I am arranging to meet the company’s executive chairman.
I cannot comment on any on-going live investigation, but I confirm that there is regular contact between officials and the GFG Alliance. As I said, I am arranging a meeting for early in my tenure.
I put it on record that it was absolutely right for the Scottish Government to intervene to save the Lochaber smelter. We will never apologise for taking access to safeguard and promote jobs in industry. I am looking to meet the executive chairman, and I shall be glad to update Mr Leonard on that meeting.
Willie Rennie
Liberal Democrat
We were promised 2,000 jobs at the Lochaber smelter, but hardly any has emerged. I am concerned that, although ground for the new aluminium billet plant was supposed to be broken last year, that work has not even started, and production is supposed to begin next year. Will the Cabinet secretary tell us what on earth is going on?
Màiri McAllan
Scottish National Party
T here is more than 90 years’ worth of experience of aluminium making at Fort William; the site is a national strategic asset. That underlines the Government’s involvement with it.
On the matter of jobs—which I agree is very important—GFG has created more than 40 new jobs in Lochaber since 2016, by increasing direct employment in the complex to 214 and supporting a valuable supply chain, with hundreds of associated jobs.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
