Emma Harper: 8. To ask the Scottish Government when it last discussed the international transfer of prisoners to Scotland with the United Kingdom Government. (S6O-01259)
Emma Harper: My constituent’s son is a UK citizen and he is currently in prison in Boston in the United States. Their son has severe mental health issues and has made four applications to the international prisoner transfer scheme to be brought to Scotland. My office has been liaising with the prison, the UK consul general and the Department of Correction in the US. We have previously been told that it...
Emma Harper: 4. To ask the First Minister, in light of summer officially commencing next week on 21 June, what action the Scottish Government is taking to promote responsible access to Scotland’s countryside. (S6F-01223)
Emma Harper: More people will be enjoying Scotland’s bonnie countryside, but it so important that they do so responsibly. As the First Minister will know, the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021, which is based on my member’s bill, is now law and increases penalties for those who allow dogs to worry or attack livestock. Will she join me in encouraging everyone to follow the...
Emma Harper: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. The app would not refresh for me, so I want to check whether I have voted no.
Emma Harper: I am wondering whether that is part of the evidence that we took for the committee’s report. I thought that we were supposed to be speaking about the report.
Emma Harper: Carol Mochan has been talking about tackling poverty, and supporting people’s salaries is obviously one of way of doing that. Does she agree that one way in which we could tackle poverty would be to fully devolve employment law to this country?
Emma Harper: As a member of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, I welcome the opportunity to speak about how important it is that we value the health and wellbeing of our young people in Scotland. I thank colleagues and everyone who contributed to the inquiry. Our committee’s report speired, or inquired, into a range of issues and covered a number of areas. It is worth reading the report, but I...
Emma Harper: Will the member take an intervention?
Emma Harper: Independence will allow all decisions, in every aspect of Scottish society, to be put in the hands of the democratically elected Scottish Parliament. Can the cabinet secretary reaffirm that that will allow this Parliament to reverse the harms that have been created by consecutive UK Governments and to build a fairer and more inclusive Scotland that values human rights as well as the wellbeing...
Emma Harper: George Eustice has written to the First Minister about the Scottish Government’s position on the new technologies, and the Scottish Government is considering its position. However, does the minister agree that the UK Government ought to respect the bounds of devolution and recognise that this matter and how to support Scotland’s farmers are matters for the Scottish Government?
Emma Harper: I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate about the creation of at least one new national park in Scotland. I will focus on the campaign for a national park in Dumfries and Galloway, the governance and structure of any proposed national park, and the exciting opportunity to create the right national park model. Currently, there are limited statutory criteria in the National Parks...
Emma Harper: I will, if Mr Carson is quick.
Emma Harper: I know that Mr Carson has raised that issue in the chamber previously. That is one of the issues that there are concerns about. At the moment, planning remains with the local authority, which means that the community is widely consulted when such decisions are made. I ask the minister, as some of the respondents to the consultation have done, to ensure that the Scottish Government remains...
Emma Harper: Donald Cameron has said that farmers would welcome a national park, but does he agree that there has been a bit of a back-and-forward, as some members of NFU Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway are a wee bit sceptical until they get more information?
Emma Harper: I have a long-standing interest in drug policy and the work to reduce the number of drug-related deaths across Scotland—not only as a registered nurse, but as a member of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee during this session and as a member of the Health and Sport Committee in the previous session of Parliament. I also participated in the joint inquiry into drugs deaths in...
Emma Harper: I thank Russell Findlay for that intervention. I am not in the Government, so I cannot speak for it at this time, but I look forward to any plans that it will announce, because I believe that drug consumption rooms that help to support people and prevent overdoses should be introduced in Scotland.
Emma Harper: I will if I have time, Presiding Officer.
Emma Harper: I thank Bob Doris for that update on what is happening in greater Glasgow. My focus is on South Scotland, so I often do not know what is happening in other health boards directly, and we have not got to that yet in the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee. In recent years, both the UK Parliament’s Scottish Affairs Committee and the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee have recommended...
Emma Harper: Will the member take an intervention?