I thank members for all their contributions, particularly Ross Greer and others from the Scottish Green Party, and Willie Rennie and others from the Scottish Liberal Democrats, for engaging extremely constructively in this process and for helping to progress this important legislation. I record my thanks to my team of officials, who have worked incredibly hard, proactively and thoughtfully. Together, with care, we have progressed this bill. Nurturing our people, who are the most important part of our society and our greatest resource, is an extremely important responsibility.

While we have been considering stage 3 tonight, there will be—or will have been; I hope that they will be in their beds now—children wondering what they will do when they grow up. We must help to inspire them. There will be teenagers deciding what choices to make at school and on the next step of their pathway, and we must help to guide them. There will be those who are part of generation Z who will be wondering how they will navigate the challenges ahead in an increasingly unsettling world, and we must seek to reassure them. There will also be older folks, some of whom might be anxious or excited about the possibility of retraining or upskilling, and we must seek to support them.

Part of our responsibility, as we serve in this place, and as we serve all those people, is to ensure continuously that our systems are adapted and ready—for our people and for the future. As the report co-authored by Audrey Cumberford of Edinburgh College, which is in my Constituency, stated, the future world of work and skills will be

“volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous”.

Therefore, we need to adapt. We need a system that is agile; that enables even more of our people to make the most of their natural talents; that meets our collaborative and collective needs and fosters diversity, creativity and collaboration; that is cohesive; and that enables us to remain globally competitive.

Once implemented, the bill will deliver a sound and balanced foundation for a simpler, more joined-up tertiary education and training system. It will continue to evolve in partnership with the Parliament, the education sector and the business community. It is important to emphasise that many in the business community support the bill. For example, this week, the Federation of Small Businesses and the Food and Drink Federation Scotland emphasised their support.

Most importantly, the bill will continue to evolve with the people whom we serve. Of course, staff are working to support learners and innovation every day. That is why I am pleased that Colleges Scotland, Universities Scotland and the Scottish Training Federation, as well as many significant employers—large and small—support the bill.