Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 12 August 2020.
Gillian Martin
Scottish National Party
It is clear that the vast Majority of eating and drinking establishments in Scotland have been complying with guidance since they were allowed to reopen, but as we have seen, it takes only a small number not having robust systems in place, or not managing systems effectively, for an outbreak to happen. Willie Rennie has blamed test and protect, but it is a compliance issue—as he would know, if his North East Scotland MSP colleague ever went to NHS Grampian briefings.
Is there scope for measures to ensure that there are sanctions for businesses that do not comply with regulations and guidance? What might those sanctions look like? How can customers’ concerns be raised?
The term "majority" is used in two ways in Parliament. Firstly a Government cannot operate effectively unless it can command a majority in the House of Commons - a majority means winning more than 50% of the votes in a division. Should a Government fail to hold the confidence of the House, it has to hold a General Election. Secondly the term can also be used in an election, where it refers to the margin which the candidate with the most votes has over the candidate coming second. To win a seat a candidate need only have a majority of 1.
