Mike MacKenzie: I am sure that the minister will be pleased to hear that I have been contacted by constituents throughout the west Highlands and beyond who are delighted by the improvements at Pulpit Rock on Loch Lomondside, especially given, as he rightly says, that the road there has been a long-standing impediment to traffic for many years. Taken together with the Crianlarich bypass—
Mike MacKenzie: Does the minister agree that, with full borrowing powers, we could do much more to upgrade infrastructure throughout the Highlands and Islands and the rest of Scotland?
Mike MacKenzie: The First Minister will be aware of the importance of the onshore wind sector to the economy of the Highlands and Islands, so it is therefore very concerning that the United Kingdom Government plans to end onshore wind farm subsidies. Does the First Minister agree that, at the very least, the Scottish Government and Parliament should be consulted on the UK Government’s wrong-headed plans?
Mike MacKenzie: I appreciate that Mr Findlay may have suspicions that those companies are involved in that kind of activity but, in these matters, mere suspicions are not good enough. Can he assure the chamber that he has exact knowledge that each and every one of the companies that he has mentioned has been legally convicted of the offences that he alleges?
Mike MacKenzie: I am pleased to speak in the debate as someone who has run a construction business for more than 30 years. I say at the outset that I am sympathetic to Mr Findlay’s concerns about blacklisting, the use of umbrella companies and payment of the living wage. Some of the companies that he named may indeed be guilty as charged, but some of them may not be, and I can never agree to Mr Findlay...
Mike MacKenzie: No, I do not have time. [Interruption.] All right, then.
Mike MacKenzie: If Mr Findlay had listened properly to the point that I made, he would not have intervened to say what he said. I put on record the fact that I am not yet an accredited living wage employer, although I pay at least the living wage, and in my many years of business I always paid above the industry’s recommended rates. I did so not so that I could put a plaque on the wall; the reward that I...
Mike MacKenzie: I am sure that Johann Lamont will know that employment legislation is a reserved matter—it is reserved to the UK Government. If those powers were devolved to the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government, we could undoubtedly simplify the legislation. Legal actions can be costly and the losers in such actions are often the public, who suffer the loss of best value and inordinate...
Mike MacKenzie: I will do, Presiding Officer. The simple solution is for full powers over employment law and taxation to be devolved to this Parliament. We have been promised a powerhouse Parliament, not the palliative care Parliament that we have, which is unable to do anything more than mitigate a little bit of the pain inflicted on us by the UK Government. If Mr Findlay really cares about these issues—
Mike MacKenzie: —he should support our calls for those powers to be devolved to this Parliament.
Mike MacKenzie: Will the member give way?
Mike MacKenzie: I have listened carefully to what Mr Rowley has said. Does he agree with me or with the Scottish Trades Union Congress that trade union and employment law should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament, particularly in light of the anti-trade union proposals in last week’s Queen’s speech?
Mike MacKenzie: 6. To ask the Scottish Government what socioeconomic benefits would arise from providing interconnectors to the islands. (S4O-04369)
Mike MacKenzie: Does the minister agree that, in addition to the socioeconomic benefits, the significant renewable energy generation capacity in Scotland’s islands can help to keep the United Kingdom’s lights on and help the UK to meet its climate change targets? Does he agree that the supply chain will produce significant numbers of well-paid jobs and careers, not only in our islands but throughout...
Mike MacKenzie: I thank all those organisations that sent briefings indicating their concerns about the bill. I especially thank all the many constituents who wrote to me, including those on both sides of the issue: those who are keen to see the bill passed and those who are not. I very much respect both viewpoints, and the fact that assisted suicide is a difficult issue for everyone, and for all of us here...
Mike MacKenzie: 2. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the United Kingdom Government on the subject of HS2. (S4T-01033)
Mike MacKenzie: Does the minister agree that including Scotland in HS2 would deliver significant economic benefits by improving connectivity and removing barriers for everybody in Scotland, but particularly for businesses in the more remote parts of the country?
Mike MacKenzie: Given the minister’s answer to my initial question, does he agree that the UK Government has shown a lack of ambition and insufficient consideration for Scotland throughout development of the plans for HS2?
Mike MacKenzie: It is an unfortunate irony that, in healthcare and in many other areas of social policy, we are becoming a victim of our own success due to the simple fact that we are, increasingly, living much longer than previous generations. The ageing demographic is perhaps the biggest challenge that we in Scotland, along with other western democracies, are facing. That is especially true in the...
Mike MacKenzie: I thank Hanzala Malik for his intervention; I am very pleased to say that I agree with what he suggests, and I am glad that we are of one mind on the need to address that challenge. As a group, allied health professionals include art therapists, chiropodists, diagnostic radiographers, dieticians, drama therapists, music therapists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, prosthetists,...
