Gail Ross: ...where funding comes from and how it is spent. North Highland College is a partner in the University of the Highlands and Islands. What we know—this is not scaremongering; it is research—is that Brexit will affect the UHI more acutely than any other university in the Scottish sector. EU funding represents 35 per cent of the UHI’s external income. In the past 20 years, more than £200...
Gail Ross: ...any other university in Scotland. Thirty-five per cent of the UHI’s external funding comes from the EU, which means that there is a potential cut to UHI of more than one third of its budget post-Brexit. That figure should make everyone in the chamber pause for thought. It is not just funding that will be lost to UHI. On pan-European academic co-operation, the horizon 2020 scheme, in...
Gail Ross: ...in 2019, which is only two years away. Fergus Ewing has raised that situation with the UK Government, and I add my voice to his today. One of our greatest exports is food and drink. A hard Brexit, as it is called, could threaten many of our exports to the EU, which is our closest and biggest market. The food and drink industry directly employs—
Gail Ross: ...areas, and they create the communities that are so important. The CAP system, while it is not perfect, has helped to protect that way of life for many years. It is important that, whatever post-Brexit may bring, there is a way to allow that way of life to continue. The renewables sector is another that has received sustained backing via the EU. It helps to deliver high-quality jobs in...
Gail Ross: ...case that, from the moment that the Scottish Government set out its plans for another referendum, it was clear that that was a means to ensure that Scotland’s interests are protected through the Brexit process? How much more can the Scottish Government impress on the UK Government that we cannot and will not sit idly by as jobs, incomes and our economy are wilfully damaged by Tory policies?
Gail Ross: ...Government prides itself on its inclusive values, and it has repeatedly acted to demonstrate that, such as with the reassurance that was offered to EU nationals who will live in Scotland after Brexit and our apology and pardon to gay men with historical convictions. I welcome the measures in the action plan to move to achieve real and tangible progress that we can all be proud of and to...
Gail Ross: 3. To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with other Administrations in the UK in relation to Government procurement post-Brexit. (S5O-01939)
Gail Ross: My constituency of Caithness, Sutherland and Ross could be adversely affected by the uncertainty that is being caused by Brexit—in particular, in the supply chain for large contracts. Does the cabinet secretary agree with me that new arrangements need to be made, and soon, to ensure that all procurement can be carried out effectively with minimal disruption to the supply chain, and to...
Gail Ross: Given the recent announcement that no special arrangements will apply to European Union citizens post-Brexit, what impact does the cabinet secretary expect the United Kingdom Government’s migration plans to have on the tourism sector in Scotland?
Gail Ross: ...veterinary and animal welfare groups see the use of CCTV as being additional to having vets on site, while some abattoirs would find such regulation quite restrictive. That will get worse after Brexit, given that so many vets are European Union nationals. Would it be possible for the CCTV to be used to allow vets to monitor proceedings remotely instead of having to be physically present,...
Gail Ross: When the cabinet secretary delivered a statement on the future of agricultural support and post-Brexit transitional arrangements in the chamber last June, he said that a central conclusion of the agriculture champions’ report was that “No change is not an option.” He also cited the discussion paper that the national council of rural advisers published, which said: “Now is the time to...
Gail Ross: ...and environmental organisations”. We debated that proposal at length, but the Tories voted against it. The cabinet secretary, Fergus Ewing, opened that debate by saying: “We are 78 days from Brexit, yet we still do not know what sort of Brexit we face. What is clear is that none of the Brexit options is good for Scotland’s rural economy—all are problematic for sectors such as...
Gail Ross: ...sorry, but I do not have time. What will happen to our precious protected geographical indication status? NFU Scotland said, in its discussion paper “A New Agricultural Policy For Scotland Post-Brexit”: “Change is inevitable, but change must be managed and not chaotic.” However, all that we see from Westminster on Brexit is chaos. We want to, and will, do things differently in...
Gail Ross: ...we are to leave the EU at all, such is the mess that the Westminster Government has made of the negotiations. However, there is no doubt that, in every sense, whether we leave with a deal or not, Brexit is the biggest current threat to our rural areas, our tourism and our food and drink sector. We have thousands of small and medium-sized businesses and producers, and a worldwide reputation...
Gail Ross: ...food and drink now being worth an estimated £1.3 billion, this is one of our most valued sectors. I will get the B word out of the way right at the start of my speech. With the uncertainties that Brexit is bringing, we know that there will be a great need for political will to be shown in the future to continue to support Scottish food and drink producers. The last thing that we need is...
Gail Ross: Donald Cameron talks about a recruitment crisis in the NHS. Does he agree with NHS managers that the loss of EU workers due to Brexit will make that even worse? Highland Council’s own figures estimate that the area will lose at least £100 million a year because of Brexit.
Gail Ross: A policy paper from Professor David Bell says that, post-Brexit, fish exports from the United Kingdom “are likely to face a mixture of tariffs and regulation that will inevitably add to their costs, making them less competitive.” The report highlights the “strong bargaining chip” that the European Union holds in negotiations over fishing, as continental markets are “the principal...
Gail Ross: 1. To ask the Scottish Government what impact Brexit has had on workers coming to Scotland from the EU. (S5O-05033)