Mr George Kynoch: Thank you for calling me, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and giving me the opportunity to address the House for the first time. I congratulate the hon. Member for Streatham (Mr. Hill) on an exceedingly articulate and fluent maiden speech. I look forward to debating many issues with him in the forthcoming years. I am not sure that I can guarantee how long that will be for him on his side of the House,...
Mr George Kynoch: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many council houses have been sold in Scotland to their tenants since 1979.
Mr George Kynoch: Although I welcome the news about the number of sales of council houses to private individuals, what measures are being taken to ensure that there is an adequate stock of rented accommodation, particularly in fast-developing districts such as the environs of Aberdeen where housing prices are high?
Mr George Kynoch: I will try to be brief because I know that many other hon. Members want to speak. My constituency fishing interests are mainly the smaller vessels—the 50-footers. My predecessor, the late Alick Buchanan-Smith, was a great champion of the fishing industry. Having visited the ports in the constituency, I can understand why. The fishing port of Gourdon is a relevant example. Some 10 years...
Mr George Kynoch: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he will take to assist in the preservation of the unique natural heritage present in the Mar Lodge estate.
Mr George Kynoch: I very much welcome my hon. Friend's announcement, but I should be interested to know whether he is aware whether the Mar Lodge estate is still on the market. If it is, what will he do to revive the purchasing consortium, which has temporarily withdrawn its interest, largely because of its inability to fund future running expenses?
Mr George Kynoch: I listened with great interest to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's introduction to this largely technical Bill. In the light of recent statistics relating, for example, to the dramatic increase in the use of firearms in robberies—from 246 cases in 1990 to 440 in 1991, an increase of some 79 per cent.—I welcome some of the parole proposals. Since 1979, there has been a massive...
Mr George Kynoch: Would my right hon. Friend like to tell the Opposition of the great success story of the Aberdeen royal hospital's NHS trust, which now has a one-stop breast clinic, evening gynaecology clinics and two new consultants and where a record number of patients are being treated who no longer have to wait for an hour when they are given an appointment? Will my right hon. Friend join me in saying...
Mr George Kynoch: Will my right hon. Friend join me in welcoming the tough new rules for GCSE examinations, which will ensure continuing pressure to improve and to achieve higher standards under this Government?
Mr George Kynoch: I am sure that the whole House welcomes my right hon. Friend's announcement that he is to issue a White Paper in the new year. Will it involve a wide-ranging examination into child care law in its entirety, and will he therefore take full account of both the reports published today?
Mr George Kynoch: I join my hon. Friends in complimenting the Secretary of State on the consultation paper. Will he emphasise to Labour Members that, if they wish best to serve Scotland's needs, they should embark on a proper debate on how best to fund water in the next 10 or 15 years and how best to manage it? It is likely that Labour will carry on in its normal way and reach a judgment before it considers...
Mr George Kynoch: I am sure that my hon. Friend is aware that we are spending 44 per cent. more in real terms on the national health service in Scotland than was spent in 1979. I hope that my hon. Friend will take an interest in the review of acute services currently being carried out by Tayside health board and ensure that Stracathro hospital, the only major hospital between Dundee and Aberdeen for acute and...
Mr George Kynoch: There are many things in my right hon. Friend's statement—
Mr George Kynoch: There are many things in my right hon. Friend's statement to welcome, despite the comments of Labour Members, who clearly wrote their speeches before they heard it. There are real increases across the board, although the Opposition and the media predicted cuts. I particularly draw attention to the £31 million extra for Scottish Homes, which is a 7 per cent. real increase. Will my right...
Mr George Kynoch: I know that my hon. Friend wants effort limitation and conservation without harming the industry. However, will he look seriously at the non-sector fishermen, who seem to resemble tail-end charlies who mop up the situation after quotas have been allocated elsewhere? If certain sectors have over-fished their quotas, non-sector fishermen have been cut off in their prime before fishing their...
Mr George Kynoch: Has my right hon. Friend had any approach from the Leader of the Opposition or the shadow spokesman for Scotland about carrying out an inquiry into these dreadful affairs?
Mr George Kynoch: Does my hon. Friend agree that the 11 per cent. increase for enterprise and environmental expenditure by Scottish Enterprise and the LECs that was announced last week by our right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will enable those bodies to continue, at local level and with local expertise, the good work that they have carried out since their very recent inception less than two years ago?
Mr George Kynoch: My hon. Friend has used the term 'alternative medicine" several times. Does he intend to use the term 'complementary medicine"? Many of the forms of treatment that he has mentioned are complementary rather than alternative.
Mr George Kynoch: No.
Mr George Kynoch: I should declare my interest. My wife is a doctor. I am sure that my hon. Friend will agree that the medical profession has accepted osteopathy because it is seen as a complementary rather than, as it was portrayed years ago, an alternative medicine. Is not that an important point?