I welcome the stage 3 debate, as I will the passing of the bill later this afternoon. As the minister said in her opening statement, the bill does not affect a lot of people in Scotland; however, for the people whom it affects, the appointment of a judicial factor to look after their estate is important.

We are all aware that the law has not changed in decades and is outdated for 21st century Scotland. I believe that the changes that the bill will make will encourage and facilitate more people to use judicial factors, when that is possible.

In particular, as the minister said in her statement, it has been complicated recently for the estates of people who have gone missing to be administered and to function in a proper way. I hope that streamlining and bringing that process into the 21st century will give more reassurance and greater protection to people who are dealing with that situation.

The bill will also help charities in the work that they do, as well as vulnerable children who require estates to be looked after.

Just because a bill is not controversial and does not get as much time in the chamber as other bills, that does not mean that it is not important. I add my thanks to the Scottish Law Commission for all the work that it has done in getting the proposal to this point. Most of its work goes unseen because it is fairly academic, but it is, nonetheless, vitally important. Without the commission producing the groundwork, we would not be where we are today.

I also thank the committee clerks for helping the committee to work our way through the bill, and I am grateful for the legal advice that we have been given. I thank the minister for the way in which she has interacted with the committee, which has been really beneficial.

I do not intend to labour my remarks, which most members will be glad to hear, except to say that this is an important step. Such bills are important, if not controversial, because they affect real lives and real situations. It is a credit to us as a Parliament that we are modernising this area of law for the 21st century.

I look forward, with my colleagues on the Conservative benches, to voting for the bill later today.