First Minister’s Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 23 January 2025.
Oliver Mundell
Conservative
It has been reported that the former Pinneys site in Annan has been broken into 12 times in the past year, and the factory has been ransacked. It is coming up for seven years since the factory’s closure was announced, and there is no sign of life at the site, let alone the 120 jobs that were promised by the Scottish Government at the time, when Scottish Enterprise sourced a buyer for the site and pledged to invest almost £2 million of taxpayers’ money.
Recent events have left my constituents wondering what has gone so badly wrong. Will the First Minister commit to an investigation of the deal with Bhagat Holdings Ltd, and will he publish a timeline of the involvement of the Scottish Government and its agencies at the site since 2018?
John Swinney
Scottish National Party
I am happy to provide Mr Mundell with a substantive response to the points that he has raised. Our enterprise agencies do a very good job of securing investment and working with companies to create employment. They have a formidable track record of success.
There will, however, be ventures that do not come to fruition. Members who have any understanding of the economy understand that there is risk; some ventures succeed and some ventures do not. However, I am assured and confident that our enterprise agencies do a fantastic job in attracting investment to our country, and we should all applaud the work that they undertake.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
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.
