Mr Donald Stewart: As the Secretary of State for Education and Science has recommended a reprieve for all rural schools south of the border will the Minister issue a directive or recommendation to local authorities in Scotland to the effect that a similar position should obtain there?
Mr Donald Stewart: As the Secretary of State for the Environment has withdrawn the threat to dump nuclear waste on sites in England, will the Prime Minister give her guarantee that there will be no dumping of such waste in Scotland?
Mr Donald Stewart: Is the Secretary of State aware that the difficulties already mentioned have been compounded by the imposition of light dues, which will have a heavy bearing on the merchant and fishing fleets? The right hon. Gentleman is incorrect in saying that we are well up with our competitors. Britain is one of the worst European nations in terms of backing the merchant service.
Mr Donald Stewart: I follow the hon. Member for Crosby (Mr. Thornton) with mixed feelings, because I acknowledge his expertise and experience. I know that he will be a severe critic of any mistakes that I make in my few remarks. I believe that the protection of sea-going vessels should not be subject to commercial pressure. I think that is the main aim of the Bill. The need for independent pilotage is greater...
Mr Donald Stewart: I wish to confirm the reference to the Minches, with which my constituency is conterminous. Is the hon. Gentleman aware that for many years the Scottish Guild of Pilots has been pressing for compulsory pilotage in that area? Vessels laden with oil from Sullom Voe may go down the Minches for shelter. If there was an accident, there would be enormous pollution and that would result in many fish...
Mr Donald Stewart: The hon. Member for Harwich (Sir J. Ridsdale) seems to be perturbed at the thought that the next Parliament might be a hung Parliament. That does not augur well for the sunshine forecasts of a great Conservative majority next time round. He may be taking a more realistic look at the situation than many of his right hon. and hon. Friends. He also mentioned inflation. I remind him that at a...
Mr Donald Stewart: Inflation was at 26 per cent. As far as I recall, I did not say that VAT had reached 26 per cent.
Mr Donald Stewart: I will do that. The Budget, taken as a whole, was an unfortunate, dull, mechanical exercise. It reminded me of an exercise in an imagined situation in an accountancy examination rather than a Budget dealing with the reality of life in the United Kingdom. There is no doubt that the kitty for income tax relief has been amassed by drastic reductions over the past few years in the quality of...
Mr Donald Stewart: I note the right hon. Gentleman's assurances about safety, but in my view they are rather injudicious. These stations are human artefacts and can be subject to human error, faults in design, metal fatigue, and so on. Many people believe that even the Russians do not build nuclear power stations to blow up in their faces. Accidents can happen anywhere, as we have seen in America. The right...
Mr Donald Stewart: asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations he has received on the financial effect on crofters arising from the introduction of community charge.
Mr Donald Stewart: Is the Minister aware of the concern and resentment felt throughout the crofting community at the imminent disappearance of the rating control concession under the poll tax legislation? Is he further aware that the factors that gave rise to that in the first place still exist to the same extent, and were accepted by a previous Conservative Administration and, indeed, have been by all ...
Mr Donald Stewart: Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
Mr Donald Stewart: Would the hon. Gentleman take into account the evidence of Robert McNamara from his tremendous knowledge of the position, that when there is a slight preponderance in favour of the Soviet Union, it has been grossly exaggerated?
Mr Donald Stewart: May I associate myself with the expressions of sympathy and with the thanks offered to the rescue services for the fact that, despite the tragic deaths, many passengers were rescued alive? Like other hon. Members, I represent a constituency which is served by roll-on roll-off ferries. I make no imputation against that type of vessel, but will the Secretary of State include in the public...
Mr Donald Stewart: Is the Minister aware that the figures—I do not challenge their accuracy in any way—are totally misleading? A fatality in the mining industry is a tragedy for the individual concerned and his family, but it is totally unlike incidents in the nuclear power industry which have implications for the local community and society at large? There is no relevant comparison between figures.
Mr Donald Stewart: The hon. Member for Fife, North-East (Mr. Henderson) has just said that the Bill is about justice. Not even his hon. Friends on the Government Front Bench pitched the thing that high. We are all aware that it is a panic measure that was brought in by the reaction against the second revaluation in Scotland. The Government's supporters in Scotland made their opposition known and therefore the...
Mr Donald Stewart: This amendment goes to the very crux of the Bill. People of very limited means will be obliged to pay out 20 per cent. of their income. That will not matter very much to most people but, as the hon. Member for Glasgow, Cathcart (Mr. Maxton) has just said, to many others it will mean the difference between a reasonable existence and doing without the very essentials of existence. The...
Mr Donald Stewart: I agree that probably only 1 per cent. of crofters are schoolmasters who have inherited their croft or bought one. But that does not apply to 99 per cent. of the crofted area, either in the islands or on the mainland.
Mr Donald Stewart: Will the hon. Gentleman take note of the excellent point made by the Secretary of State when he said that the issue was between Unionists of all parties and the Scottish Nationalists?
Mr Donald Stewart: Is the Minister aware that there will be no achievements from the Government, apart from the lifeline of the revenue from Scottish oil, and that the spin-off for Scotland has been minimal, bearing out the forecast that Scotland has been the only country which has had oil discovered in its territory and has ended up worse than it was before the oil was discovered? Will the Minister take into...