Jim Fairlie: The report of the short-life food security and supply task force sets out a number of areas relating to food security that are reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Government’s commitment to food production is clearly demonstrated through its commitment to active farming. Given that some of the levers on food security are reserved, what response, if any, has the Scottish Government...
Jim Fairlie: When is an international treaty not an international treaty? Ordinarily, there should be a punchline inserted at this point, but unfortunately the joke is on us in so many ways that it is embarrassing and dangerous. I attended the Quality Meat Scotland breakfast meeting last week at the Royal Highland Show, where the First Minister gave a well-received address to the farming and red-meat...
Jim Fairlie: All that makes me wonder whether Boris Johnson’s volte face is more about his having realised that if the Northern Ireland protocol works in Northern Ireland and applies in Scotland, too, he might have more to lose than he thought.
Jim Fairlie: First, I congratulate the First Minister and the Cabinet for delivering on the voice of the people first, because Westminster is clearly intent on destroying the idea of the UK as a voluntary partnership of nations. A Tory UK Government with only six MPs from Scotland, supported on this issue by Labour, is seeking to deny the people of Scotland the democratic right to choose their own future....
Jim Fairlie: 6. To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to ensure that there is a suitable and sustainable electric vehicle charging network in place across Scotland. (S6O-01281)
Jim Fairlie: One of the key things that I am hearing from electric vehicle users in my constituency is that we need more EV charging points, and that we need to make sure that the existing ones are reliable. Can the minister explain how the electric vehicle infrastructure fund will help to increase the number of charging points in my constituency?
Jim Fairlie: Setting aside the science of the matter for just a moment, on a practical level, the fact is—[ Interruption .] I know that the Tories do not want to hear it, but they should just listen. The fact is that Scotland was invited to participate in creating the legislation the day before the bill was introduced at Westminster. Requests for sight of a draft of the bill were ignored until the...
Jim Fairlie: 7. To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the continued use of Asulox for bracken control. (S6O-01245)
Jim Fairlie: I am happy to hear that the minister has met with stakeholders, and I am reassured that she is aware of just how damaging bracken is, not just to the environment but to animal health, and because of the potential for very serious accidents involving land managers when trying to manage bracken using land-based methods such as bracken busters on challenging hill land. I have been asked by...
Jim Fairlie: 3. To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what steps it is taking to ensure the availability of Scottish produce on the menu in the Scottish Parliament. (S6O-01214)
Jim Fairlie: How is the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body monitoring the carbon footprint, including from food miles, from its sourcing and product supply?
Jim Fairlie: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. Unfortunately, my app did not connect. I would have voted no.
Jim Fairlie: Allotments and community growing are undoubtedly important to encourage people to get engaged with the food that they eat. Does the minister agree that, if the Tories are really so concerned about the situations that are impacting the food and drink supply chain, they might want to raise those concerns with their colleagues in Westminster?
Jim Fairlie: There are two words that I did not expect to hear much in Conservative members’ speeches today. Those words, of course, are the two Bs: Boris and Brexit— two pretty big Bs for anybody to deal with. Boris blunders along and bungles Brexit. Meanwhile, the disastrous consequences of Brexit are swept under the number 10 carpet, no doubt alongside all the party hats and empty bottles. I am...
Jim Fairlie: The macroeconomics sit with Westminster. However, to go back to the point that I was making, that investment is no flash in the pan. We have been the most successful nation or region in the UK—outside London—at attracting foreign direct investment for nine of the past 11 years, and for the seventh year running. Why are we doing so well in that field? I imagine that the proactive work that...
Jim Fairlie: Will the member give way?
Jim Fairlie: I ask Douglas—my apologies—Daniel Johnson whether he recognises that, as an independent country, we would have a very different position. The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund is worth £2.1 million to each and every Norwegian citizen. Does he agree that there has been a massive wasted opportunity for the people of Scotland?
Jim Fairlie: 7. To ask the Scottish Government what support is available to local authorities to encourage the development of district heating systems in conjunction with the incineration of waste rather than sending waste to landfill. (S6O-01180)
Jim Fairlie: I recently attended a meeting of the cross-party group on Nordic countries and was interested to hear from Morten Duedahl from the Danish Board of District Heating, who told us that around 50 per cent of Danish heat demand is serviced by district heating and heat networks. In my constituency, there are plans for an energy-from-waste plant at the Binn ecopark. Will the minister set out how...
Jim Fairlie: 4. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is, regarding the impact on Scotland, to comments by Ian Wright of the Food and Drink Sector Council regarding the United Kingdom’s preparedness for increasing food prices and shortages. (S6F-01149)