The Official Report is the reliable written record of what is said in public meetings of the Scottish Parliament and its committees. It includes:
- debates on motions and bills; ministerial statements; general, portfolio and topical question times; First Minister's question time; committee inquiries; and evidence sessions
It is a "substantially verbatim" report, which means that repetitions and redundancies are omitted and obvious mistakes are corrected. Official Report staff exercise editorial judgment to convey the spoken word in written text while maintaining the flavour of the speech.
Anyone whose speech we've reported has an opportunity to suggest corrections to the draft Official Report within 20 days of publication. You can read more about this process on the Changes and corrections to the Official Report page. During this time, the Official Report may also be proofread for quality control.
Thereafter, the Official Report is no longer subject to change and becomes the authoritative record of the meeting.
