Deputy First Minister John Swinney admitted action to tackle the scandal of child poverty and the climate emergency has been too slow compared with a rapid response to Covid.
Mr Swinney said organisations across the public sector showed how quickly they can change and make decisions in a crisis.
Bu he questioned why the same approach did not go into tackling other problems.
He made the comments to a Holyrood committee on Tuesday, also warning there are “a lot of institutional barriers to progress”.
Mr Swinney said people should not “underestimate” the challenge that presents.
The question for me is, if we can do that because of Covid, what is stopping us on child poverty and the climate emergency?”
– John Swinney
Mr Swinney was updating MSPs on the progress of the Christie Commission, which ended with a report in 2011 on the reform of public service delivery in Scotland.
He said the same amount of “pace” shown during the coronavirus pandemic needs to be applied to other key areas of government work.
Lessons to be learned from the pandemic
The deputy first minister said: “There are definitely lessons to be learned from the pandemic.
“A hard reality we have to accept about the pandemic is the degree of change in the delivery of a whole range of public bodies, which took place at a pace I have never seen before in my life.
“It was a welcome change, and I wish I had seen more of it in my time.
“It demonstrates it can be done, that is the crucial point.
“It had to be done because we had a public health emergency.”
Mr Swinney, MSP for Perthshire North, added: “Countless organisations disrespected boundaries and worked at pace to find a solution.
“The question for me is, if we can do that because of Covid, what is stopping us on child poverty and the climate emergency?”
A person ‘frustrated’ at the pace of change
Mr Swinney also expressed frustration at the number of barriers that are often thrown up in making decisions on public sector reform.
Scottish Labour MSP Daniel Johnson told the deputy first minister he always struck him as “a person frustrated at the pace of change” and asked what advice he would give to his older self.
In response, Mr Swinney said: “There are a lot of institutional barriers to progress and we shouldn’t underestimate the challenges that exist.
“What the 2021 John Swinney would say to the 2007 John Swinney, is don’t underestimate the scale of obstacles to overcome.
“That is the best advice to offer.”
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