Food

Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 17 March 2016.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Sarah Boyack Sarah Boyack Labour

No, thank you.

That is why Scottish Labour has campaigned so strongly for the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board to be retained. The board is crucial to preventing the exploitation of vulnerable workers, whether that is for isolated workers in our rural communities, or in the particular challenge of protecting migrant workers. It has also been important in focusing on health and safety because workers in our rural communities can be isolated.

It is significant that Nourish and Unite have argued together the importance not just of retaining the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board, but of having a real living wage.

In yesterday’s debate on land reform, we were delighted to see the Scottish Government pick up the issue of human rights and food security. That chimes very well with the motion that we are considering. We should consider food security as part of human rights. We have adopted the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and now have the voluntary guidelines on responsible tenure of land, fisheries and forests in the context of national food security. That brings a new dimension to our food policy for the future. That is our challenge.

I welcome the work that is being done by Nourish and the food coalition to put food policy in a national context. I argue very strongly that we also need to make the connections at a local level. I want to celebrate the work that is being done by those local groups. In the Lothians, we have the back greens initiative in Gorgie and Dalry, which has transformed people’s back greens and brought residents in tenements together.