James Dornan: I cannot believe that you would want to miss them, Presiding Officer. Can you hear me all right?
James Dornan: I wished Tom Mason all the best, and I do the same for the cabinet secretary. Aileen Campbell and I go back to the good old days of the SNP Glasgow regional association; recent events have been nothing in comparison with what we had to put up with in those days, and that was only among a few of us. She has been a great friend and colleague for a long time, and she has been an absolute...
James Dornan: 7. To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to assist children from the poorest backgrounds with their education. (S5O-05144)
James Dornan: Will the cabinet secretary confirm that the announcement of an additional £25 million to tackle poverty and inequality will not only further enhance the £100 Covid hardship payment for children and young people who receive free school meals, but enable support to be extended to children who receive free lunches in early learning and childcare settings?
James Dornan: made a solemn affirmation.
James Dornan: I place on record my admiration for the community resilience of the people in Pollokshields yesterday. Kenmure Street is not far from my constituency, and I know that some of those people were there to show Scottish solidarity. The Home Office’s deliberate, provocative act while the First Minister and the rest of the MSPs were being sworn in further exemplifies how cowardly, barbaric and...
James Dornan: To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with Police Scotland and Rangers Football Club regarding the reported Covid-19 regulations breaches and incidents of vandalism, violence and anti-Catholic bigotry in Glasgow city centre and at Ibrox Stadium on 15 May.
James Dornan: Saturday’s scenes were an utter disgrace. Like many people, I am sick and tired of Rangers fans thinking that they are above the law. Vandalism, violence among themselves and towards the police, anti-Catholic bigotry and anti-Irish racism show us that we have a major problem in Scotland, which we must tackle. The blame for the abhorrent scenes lies squarely with the Rangers fans who were in...
James Dornan: I welcome Police Scotland’s having established a dedicated inquiry team to investigate the carnage at George Square, but we also need to take steps to prevent such abhorrent scenes from happening in the first place. As the cabinet secretary is well aware, I have for years been pushing for strict liability, whereby clubs would be held responsible for the actions of their fans. Although I...
James Dornan: In light of the news that the Janssen one-dose vaccine has been approved for use in the UK, can the First Minister indicate whether vaccination centres in Scotland will use it and who is most likely to have priority to receive it?
James Dornan: I have long campaigned for the elimination of violence against women and girls, and the cabinet secretary will be aware of the campaigns led by my incredibly brave, determined and focused constituent, Fiona Drouet. It is vital that we do, and are seen to do, all we can to ensure that justice is done for all victims of domestic abuse. Will the Scottish Government commit to undertaking research...
James Dornan: 7. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer, and welcome to your new position. To ask the Scottish Government when the most recent meeting of the oil and gas and energy transition strategic leadership group was held. (S6O-00007)
James Dornan: Given the major role that the oil and gas sector, along with the supply chain, has in the Scottish economy and the part that it will play in economic recovery from Covid, can the minister provide an update on any initial plans that the sector has on economic recovery and how that will support the workforce and ensure that the energy transition agenda continues to meet our net zero emissions...
James Dornan: I am grateful for the opportunity to speak in this debate on the post-pandemic recovery, renewal and transformation of justice. I will add to my colleagues’ impassioned words on justice a few observations of my own. I acknowledge the Scottish police’s work throughout the pandemic. All of us in the chamber have had the luxury of working from home. The Scottish police’s courage and...
James Dornan: The First Minister spoke about this in an earlier response, but does she think that the UK Government’s delay in tightening the borders contributed to the delta variant getting loose in the UK?
James Dornan: I acknowledge the Scottish Government’s commitment to prioritising the Covid recovery, but, as the First Minister said in her statement, it is right that the people of Scotland have a say on what that recovery looks like in the long term. Will the First Minister outline how the agreement between the SNP and the Greens strengthens the democratic mandate for an independence referendum and...
James Dornan: Can the minister tell us what has changed in rail services in Scotland since the SNP came into power in 2007?
James Dornan: 6. To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making on reducing child poverty. (S6O-00112)
James Dornan: Does the cabinet secretary agree that the Scottish child payment has already made significant strides towards reducing child poverty in Scotland in general and in Glasgow, in particular, where 58,520 payments have been made to Glasgow families, totalling £2,895,000, and that that demonstrates the Scottish Government’s progressive thinking as opposed to the regressive universal credit cuts...
James Dornan: We know that, because of its complexity and the diversity of its symptoms, long Covid cannot be properly handled with a one-size-fits-all approach. What steps can the Scottish Government take to ensure that different health boards have flexibility to deliver the care that local people who are living with long Covid need?