Is there actually such a thing as the poverty industry'? Highland SNP MSP Rob Gibson provoked fury last week at the Scottish Parliament when he praised the government for looking at the voluntary sector and "seeing where the valuable parts are and where the dross is", accusing the previous executive of having presided for eight years over the growth of a "poverty industry".

Peter Kelly, director, Scottish Poverty Alliance
"The notion of a poverty industry is completely misplaced. This is the same old tired language and same lack of understanding of the role of the voluntary sector.

"People who work in the voluntary sector are not there gaining vast amounts of wealth. They are doing what is often a very difficult job helping people who are marginalised. They should be supported, not referred to as dross'.

"It isn't the job of politicians to criticise the voluntary sector for trying to address the problems of those affected by social exclusion. It's the role of politicians to help them achieve even more."

John Kerr, founder, Cranhill Credit Union, Glasgow
"The poverty industry exists, and it is massive. It has been going on for many, many years, but we are not getting a return on this huge investment.

"I've lived in these communities all my life and there is a lot of money wasted. We've recycled £1m of savings into £15m of small loans, and saved our community more than £30m in interest over the years. Most initiatives don't achieve anything like that.

"They are all living off our backs. They are grasshoppers going from one project to another for big salaries, but ordinary people stay where they are and their lifestyles don't change."

Lucy McTernan, director of corporate affairs, Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations
"A key task facing Scotland is the drive to combat poverty and inequality. One of the most important ways this can succeed is by embracing the expertise of those working in the voluntary sector with the knowledge and skills to develop effective solutions to local problems.

"Very many voluntary-sector projects aim to improve the local environment. By drawing on the coal-face experience of the sector in dealing with poverty and inequality, Community Planning Partnerships have the ability to coordinate service delivery in a way that improves effectiveness and makes best use of scant resources."

Gavin Brown, Conservative enterprise spokesman
"Talk of a poverty industry is highly inflammatory. More than 50,000 organisations in Scotland bring over one million volunteers in to help and a lot of these organisations are fleet of foot: they can deal with problems more quickly, with less bureaucracy than the state.

"People sometimes expect a voluntary organisation to wave a magic wand, but I don't think there are lots of people making a salary and not making a difference. Of course we should measure the effectiveness of any organisation. But to describe it as a poverty industry or describe organisations as dross is simply wrong and we can be pretty sure it has caused offence."

Stewart Maxwell, Minister for Communities
"Over the past 10 years Labour failed to combat poverty, but this SNP government is determined to tackle poverty and its symptoms.

"The Scottish Government recognises the invaluable work conducted by the voluntary sector. The organisations provide enormous benefits to communities the length and breadth of the country.

"We strongly support the work of the voluntary sector, which is why we are investing substantially to allow it to thrive. We recognise there is more to the sector than service delivery, which is why we also invest in the sector as an advocate for change, as an innovator and for its contribution to policy thinking."