First Minister’s Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 6 June 2024.
Alex Cole-Hamilton
Liberal Democrat
As we commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-day, I have found myself reflecting on a particular evening during the 2016 election campaign, when I knocked on a door not too far from here. The door was answered by a 96-year-old gentleman, who invited me in to admire his collection of bagpipes. Not only that, but he taught me my first ever bagpipe lesson. What blew me away was that those were the pipes that he had used to bring the troops ashore at Sword beach in Normandy on D-day 80 years ago. I reflect on his memory. Sadly, he has since passed away, as have all too many veterans. This may be the last time that we commemorate such an anniversary alongside people who were actually there. We reflect on their sacrifice on the altar of freedom, for the cause of democracy and against the tyranny of Nazism, and we will remember them.
To ask the Deputy First Minister when the Cabinet will next meet. (S6F-03197)
Kate Forbes
Scottish National Party
The Cabinet will next meet on Tuesday.
Alex Cole-Hamilton
Liberal Democrat
In the early hours of 5 July 2015, John Yuill and Lamara Bell were returning from a camping trip when their car left the road on the M9. The police were alerted to the crash but did not turn up for three days. All the while, Lamara was still alive, trapped, calling for help. She may have survived if help had arrived sooner. In the weeks beforehand, my party had been warning about the chaos in the call centre at Bilston Glen, which was caused by the rushed centralisation of the police by the Scottish National Party Government. John Swinney was Deputy First Minister at the time.
The fatal accident inquiry system is so broken that it has taken nine years to report on the deaths of John and Lamara, with final conclusions published only last week. Will the Deputy First Minister accept that her Government has failed on two counts? The first is the botched centralisation that contributed to the tragedy in the first place, and the second is the intolerable wait for answers that the families have had to endure.
Kate Forbes
Scottish National Party
I start by expressing my deepest sympathies to the families and friends of Lamara Bell and John Yuill. When the situation happened, the former justice secretary, in his statement to Parliament following the court ruling, was quite clear about giving our deepest apologies. The former chief constable has also apologised unreservedly to the families, and I repeat that this afternoon.
On Alex Cole-Hamilton’s points, it is important that we start by looking at the lessons that have been learned. All the recommendations of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland’s independent review into Police Scotland’s contact, command and control Division have now been implemented. I note that the fatal accident inquiry found that lessons have been learned and that the public should have confidence in Police Scotland’s ability to respond to the calls made.
Alex Cole-Hamilton also made a point about the fatal accident inquiry. Obviously, the conduct of investigations that lead to fatal accident inquiries is a matter for the Lord Advocate and her staff, acting independently of Government. However, I understand that the issue has been raised with the Solicitor General, who has indicated that she is willing to come back to Parliament to answer questions more fully.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
The House of Commons votes by dividing. Those voting Aye (yes) to any proposition walk through the division lobby to the right of the Speaker and those voting no through the lobby to the left. In each of the lobbies there are desks occupied by Clerks who tick Members' names off division lists as they pass through. Then at the exit doors the Members are counted by two Members acting as tellers. The Speaker calls for a vote by announcing "Clear the Lobbies". In the House of Lords "Clear the Bar" is called. Division Bells ring throughout the building and the police direct all Strangers to leave the vicinity of the Members’ Lobby. They also walk through the public rooms of the House shouting "division". MPs have eight minutes to get to the Division Lobby before the doors are closed. Members make their way to the Chamber, where Whips are on hand to remind the uncertain which way, if any, their party is voting. Meanwhile the Clerks who will take the names of those voting have taken their place at the high tables with the alphabetical lists of MPs' names on which ticks are made to record the vote. When the tellers are ready the counting process begins - the recording of names by the Clerk and the counting of heads by the tellers. When both lobbies have been counted and the figures entered on a card this is given to the Speaker who reads the figures and announces "So the Ayes [or Noes] have it". In the House of Lords the process is the same except that the Lobbies are called the Contents Lobby and the Not Contents Lobby. Unlike many other legislatures, the House of Commons and the House of Lords have not adopted a mechanical or electronic means of voting. This was considered in 1998 but rejected. Divisions rarely take less than ten minutes and those where most Members are voting usually take about fifteen. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P9 at the UK Parliament site.
