Duncan Hamilton: rose—
Duncan Hamilton: Will the member give way?
Duncan Hamilton: On a point of order, Presiding Officer.
Duncan Hamilton: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I want your guidance about whether the level of detail that Cathie Craigie is introducing is appropriate. It is beyond anything that any other member has put into the public domain.
Duncan Hamilton: My second point is that I hope that you will instruct Cathie Craigie to correct the factually inaccurate statement that she just made that both SNP members signed up to the prospect that either candidate would be suitable. It is just not true.
Duncan Hamilton: I rise as a member of the selection panel and as a concerned back bencher to oppose the motion on the basis that I do not think that the right person will be appointed to the role. There are those who have criticised us for intimating that we would oppose the motion. I want to set out for those people the reasons why we do so. When we were appointed to the selection panel, we were appointed...
Duncan Hamilton: I will not do so at the moment. As the interview panel could not agree whether to appoint Mr Dunion or have a confirmatory vote on the appointment in a room of seven people, I suggest that it is right and proper for the Parliament to look again at the appointment.
Duncan Hamilton: It is not appropriate for me to share with the Parliament details of the other candidates. Suffice it to say that another candidate had instant credibility, as well as experience and a proven track record in freedom of information.
Duncan Hamilton: I hope that I am within the bounds of what is proper. I have made it clear to the Parliament that I will not name the other candidates. I repeat that one candidate had experience, a proven track record in freedom of information, instant credibility and a core commitment to the independence of the role.
Duncan Hamilton: I hope that we can have an end to bogus points of order from the Government benches. I want to put it on record that no member of the SNP has revealed anything about the identity of those involved in the interview process. It is ridiculous for Jackie Baillie to make such a suggestion. I suggest that the decision to reject one particular candidate was a mistake. In opposing the motion, I seek...
Duncan Hamilton: In recent days, the minister has made great play of a letter that he has received from the European Commission that rules out any appeal against the loss of European cash for the Highlands and Islands. Will he publish that letter? Does it explicitly and incontrovertibly rule out the possibility of reclassification of the current funding package to objective 1? Does he recognise that...
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive what rationale is used to decide the length of time between tests for amnesic shellfish poisoning levels in any given designated area.
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive whether the level of toxins in scallops can fluctuate on a daily and weekly basis.
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are sufficient air links to the Highlands and Islands. (S1O-5962)
Duncan Hamilton: In a previous answer, the minister said that he was aware of the concerns of the people of Barra. Is he aware of the concern that the reduction to a one-year tender is bad not only because it is a reduction from the three-year tender, but because it gives the Executive the opportunity to redefine what a public service obligation is and therefore the ability to exclude Barra? Will the...
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive which of its representatives spoke at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting on 14-15 October 2002 in Luxembourg.
Duncan Hamilton: Before I speak in support of the SNP motion, I intimate that I do not seek to dress up the current system as a disaster area, so I hope that my comments and criticisms are taken in that spirit. I do not think that we can say that the Executive has not attempted to join up the criminal justice system. Pauline McNeill is partly right to say that the effort that the Pryce-Dyer report represents...
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will place a copy of the tender pack for the passenger-only vessel on the Gourock to Dunoon route in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive when the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 will come into force.
Duncan Hamilton: To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Glasgow to Barra air link is subject to a public service obligation for one year only and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.
