Fiona McLeod: I just want to finish this point. Could we say in the bill that, under the sustainable procurement duty, we must look to procurement practices that cover fairly traded products? If we talk about fair trade, we are limiting ourselves to the Fairtrade brand. I am sorry that I cannot give way to Ms Boyack because I am terribly short of time. The other thing I worry about is whether it would fix...
Fiona McLeod: It is difficult to be brief on the topic of the named person, given the amount of misinformation that has been going out. First, I make clear to members that I speak as someone who was once a chair of a children’s panel advisory committee and who was, many years ago, a researcher for the former Royal Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children. What is so important about the...
Fiona McLeod: Some members may be surprised that, as the MSP for Strathkelvin and Bearsden, I rise to talk about rural schools, but I actually have three rural schools in my constituency. However, I believe that the debate is also important because we can learn from the standards that we are going to apply for rural school closures and use them for urban school closures. The cabinet secretary used words...
Fiona McLeod: 4. To ask the Scottish Government what powers local authorities have to exempt care-home residents from council tax payments on their unoccupied properties. (S4O-02860)
Fiona McLeod: Is the minister aware that East Dunbartonshire Council is demanding council tax payments of up to 90 per cent from care home residents whose unoccupied properties are on the market for lease?
Fiona McLeod: 6. To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has made of recent reports on how the United Kingdom Government’s economic strategy is impacting on inequality in Scotland. (S4F-01843)
Fiona McLeod: I am sure that the First Minister is aware that Professor Tony Travers, of the London School of Economics and Political Science, said in the Financial Times this week: “London is the dark star of the economy”. That followed similar comments from the UK Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Vince Cable. Does the First Minister agree that independence is, as he said, the...
Fiona McLeod: Is the member aware that article 7(1) of the Discretionary Housing Payment (Grants) Order 2001 says that we cannot do anything more than multiply by 2.5? It is just not allowed.
Fiona McLeod: The facts.
Fiona McLeod: Will the member take an intervention?
Fiona McLeod: We are talking about the local authorities’ duty of wellbeing towards their residents. How does Jenny Marra feel about East Dunbartonshire Council, which is a Labour-Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition that said, up until Christmas eve, that anybody who wanted to apply for a discretionary housing payment had to produce the receipts for their messages? Is that about wellbeing for the tenants?
Fiona McLeod: 1. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to mitigate the effects of the so-called bedroom tax. (S4T-00561)
Fiona McLeod: The minister said that the Government is mitigating the bedroom tax by up to—as it is legally allowed to—a maximum of £20 million. I am sure that she will be aware of the comments of the Scotland Office minister, David Mundell, that the Scottish Government is able to exempt everyone in Scotland who is affected by the bedroom tax. Therefore, the coalition Government is no longer just...
Fiona McLeod: As a serial member of private bill committees, it is appropriate that I thank the committee members and the convener in particular, the committee clerks and the legal team that provided us with advice. The City of Edinburgh Council (Portobello Park) Bill has been perhaps the most complicated private bill that I have considered so far, not only in a legal sense but because the committee has,...
Fiona McLeod: I thank members across the parties for supporting my motion so that we could debate it in Parliament, and I welcome to the gallery members of Optometry Scotland and some local opticians in my constituency. I am pretty sure that I can spot that Peter Ivins from Bearsden is here, and can I see Neil Drain from Kirkintilloch? I thank those gentlemen very much for coming. It was partly a visit to...
Fiona McLeod: l start by referring members to two entries in my register of interests: I am a member of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals and the chair of the Scottish Library and Information Council. I thank Stewart for bringing this debate—and not just on behalf of the library users of Moray and the campaigners who are here with us tonight. The passion of the library...
Fiona McLeod: Will the member give way?
Fiona McLeod: 10. To ask the Scottish Government whether it would support a national “dementia-friendly” accreditation scheme. (S4O-02696)
Fiona McLeod: I thank the cabinet secretary for his comprehensive answer. The £25 million from the Life Changes Trust is incredibly welcome. I am sure that he is aware that a lot of good work is happening around the country to build dementia-friendly communities, including work in my constituency by East Dunbartonshire Council. However, my great concern is that we will all go off and do our own thing. I...
Fiona McLeod: Going back to the original question about providing support for carers to use information technology, I take this opportunity to make the minister aware of the fantastic work that Carers Link East Dunbartonshire is doing in my constituency through one-to-one IT training, the link and learn project, and the meet and geek group. We are already skilling our carers greatly to be able to use IT.
