Gordon Lindhurst: 4. I enter into the spirit of the afternoon’s proceedings by also wishing the cabinet secretary—indeed, everyone—all the very best for the future. To ask the Scottish Government what impact the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union has had on Scotland’s relationships with countries outwith the EU. (S5O-05125)
Gordon Lindhurst: We need to recognise the benefits that we have already seen—for example, the United States Government’s recent lifting of tariffs on many goods, which should result in millions of pounds from exports of cashmere and of cheese and other delicacies. Will the cabinet secretary commit the Scottish Government to working positively to benefit the whole of Scotland from the advantages that have...
Gordon Lindhurst: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I tried to vote, but for some reason my voting app did not work. I would have voted no.
Gordon Lindhurst: Presiding Officer, “They say we’re young and we don’t know”— or at least they did five years ago. They could be forgiven for feeling that we are all now trapped in a type of groundhog day. We debated pre-release access in November 2018, September 2019 and November 2020 and we are debating it again today. It has taken four years, three cabinet secretaries, two ministers and a change...
Gordon Lindhurst: Not at this stage. Two hundred years ago, a politician wrote the 21-volume “Statistical Account of Scotland”, an undertaking said to have required the labour of Hercules combined with the patience of Job. The author, Sir John Sinclair, saw it as an inquiry “for the purposes of ascertaining the quantum of happiness.” His view of its relevance to the public was that it was “the means...
Gordon Lindhurst: That is the same repeated, and, frankly, boring point that has been made previously in these debates. It is worrying that the Scottish Government considers it important to oppose so obvious a solution and spend the Parliament’s time doing that in the course of a pandemic rather than agreeing with it.
Gordon Lindhurst: Yes, I agree with the member and I will come on to that point. Let me elaborate on what the bill will do. The first strand would end pre-release access for retail sales and gross domestic product, neither of which is subject to pre-release at the UK level, and the second strand would stipulate that the removal of pre-release access should be phased. One day would be reduced to a half day...
Gordon Lindhurst: Thank you, Presiding Officer. I hope that my time is not yet up, in the chamber or elsewhere. World statistics day was last November, and the tagline was “Connecting the world with data we can trust”. Although the bill is purely about economic statistics, it is probably fair to say that, over the past 12 months, we have all come to appreciate the importance of data and the excellent work...
Gordon Lindhurst: 3. To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to decrease class sizes and reduce the prevalence of multilevel teaching. (S5O-05051)
Gordon Lindhurst: Just last week, the Scottish Conservatives revealed that almost 40 per cent of Edinburgh’s schools were teaching classes that combined three or more year groups. It is shocking that 17 per cent are teaching four or more year groups. The Scottish National Party Government is failing my constituents. What is going to be done about that?
Gordon Lindhurst: These measures to tackle Scotland’s move to zero carbon by the middle of the century will no doubt be welcomed by all parties. When the bill came before Parliament at stage 1, I noted that modern district heating systems were pioneered in New York in 1877, where Birdshill Holly, having noticed the abundance of thermal energy in towns and cities, realised that it could be repurposed and...
Gordon Lindhurst: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I do not think that my vote was recorded. I am not sure what was happening with the device, but I would have voted no.
Gordon Lindhurst: By now, unexplained wealth orders are a well-established part of Scotland’s ability to tackle criminal wealth and property retention but, as a legal process, their basis and investigation, should they be used, should be entirely independent of Government. In other words, they should be non-political. No one, including politicians, should be above the law but, at the same time, the law...
Gordon Lindhurst: Justice should be paramount in any criminal justice system and should have two ends: protection of the innocent, including victims of crime, and conviction of the guilty. Part of protecting the innocent is minimising the trauma caused to the innocent, such as by the death of a loved one. The bill has commendable intentions and was well worthy of consideration. I recall clearly the...
Gordon Lindhurst: The Scottish Conservatives’ approach to the bill has been outlined by my colleague Liam Kerr. I need not repeat what he has said, but perhaps one or two comments would be appropriate. A key issue, on which many members have touched, is whether the measures that the bill aims to put into law fall outwith with the competence of this Parliament. Indeed, it is already considered that they do....
Gordon Lindhurst: I have been contacted by and on behalf of secondary 6 pupils in West Lothian. Their understanding is that they will be asked to sit a Scottish Qualifications Authority paper as part of their grades assessment at a different time from other schools in their area. Their question, which I put to the First Minster, is this: how would that be an acceptable, equal or fair way of assessing them for...
Gordon Lindhurst: The cabinet secretary said in her statement: “Despite our efforts, BiFab is now in administration.” Yesterday, when she appeared before the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee, she repeated the Scottish Government’s position that it will not produce the legal advice that it received on BiFab or release the pre-acquisition business plan. How is anyone to know what efforts the...
Gordon Lindhurst: 4. To ask the Scottish Government what provision it has made to ensure that both publicly and privately owned public transport continues to operate viably, in light of reduced passenger numbers and changing working patterns following Covid-19. (S5O-04844)
Gordon Lindhurst: The cabinet secretary referred to certain dates early in the new year, but the Scottish Government has so far failed to provide detail of the support beyond the beginning of the new year. People have substantially altered their patterns of transport from public to private as a result of the Covid situation. Will the cabinet secretary provide the detail of the Government’s forward strategy...
Gordon Lindhurst: The debate is about a new, post-Brexit world, in which our committees will have new challenges. We must take time to consider our approach—but not too much time. I am pleased to take part in the debate on behalf of the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee. I thank members of the Finance and Constitution Committee for their diligent work and for initiating the debate. The Finance and...
