Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts

Speech by Robert Brown MSP on Thu 24th Jan 2008

We certainly had a torrid procedural dispute about the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Bill in the chamber last week, but I refute Gavin Brown's rather negative claim that a last-minute amendment has been lodged. That is not the case. As Jeremy Purvis illustrated, we have raised the matter a number of times, and our amendment was lodged in the normal way, in response to a Government motion. There is nothing last minute about it.

I am pleased to say that, on the whole, today's debate has been a bit more positive. I am grateful to both the Government and the Labour Party for helping to move us forward substantially.

The difference between Labour's amendment and the Liberal Democrats' amendment is not a difference of principle; it is a difference of emphasis and direction. I want to get rid of the idea that an attempt is being made to exclude the whole voluntary sector from consultation or participation. That was not the intention of the original amendment and that is not where we want to go.

Gavin Brown: Will the member take an intervention?

Robert Brown: No. The member should let me finish, if he does not mind.

It is important to take a proportional and reasonable approach. Some £40 million is a reasonably substantial sum, but if it is spread around the world, it will dissipate into not very much. It represents a little bit more than £1 million for each council area. We all know that £1 million is a lot of money in personal terms, but it is fairly small beer for organisations. It does, however, allow for concentration within the bill's aims, which is what we are asking for.

A priority of the bill is explained in clause 17, which refers to

"meeting expenditure on or connected with the provision of services, facilities or opportunities to meet the needs of young people".

That is with regard to English expenditure, of course. We seek to echo that approach across the board.

Dave Thompson: Of course, clause 17 is much broader than clause 17(1)(a). Clause 17(1)(b), for example, refers to

"the development of individuals' ability to manage their finances"

and

"access to personal financial services",

and clause 17(1)(c) refers to money being distributed

"to a social investment wholesaler",

which is a person or body that supports third-sector organisations. Does the member accept that the clause is much broader than clause 17(1)(a)?

Robert Brown: I accept that entirely, but we are talking about a priority in the bill and things going in a certain direction in England. We are proposing a sensible use of the prioritisation that is available to the Government and the Parliament in the bill.

I have tried to emphasise how modest the amount of money that we are talking about is if it is spread too widely; alternatively, we can focus it.

I commend the Government for its approach to early years learning, for example, and the emphasis on such matters in its rhetoric, but giving priority and opportunities to young people remains the single biggest need in Scotland. In some respects, they are the missing generation-people who go through the school system with all its merits and come out at the other end without the skills necessary to make progress. They are the people who can add to the Scottish economy, which I think appeals to Jim Mather very much.

The debate has been useful and we have moved the argument forward. If the Parliament unites today behind the Labour amendment, which the Government has said that it will accept, that will give a degree of focus. Our argument is that it does not go far enough and that we ought to firm up the wording a bit, leaving the elements about wider consultation of and access for other organisations but putting the focus squarely on the needs of young people and young people's services in Scotland. Jeremy Purvis has done the Parliament and the nation a service by focusing on the matter, and I am grateful to him for lodging the amendments to the Labour amendment and the original motion.

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Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts.