Public Petitions Committee, 22 Dec 2004

Meeting date: Wednesday, December 22, 2004

Official Report 202KB pdf

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Public Petitions System (Promotion)

Agenda item 3 is a report on our event in Inverness to promote the public petitions system. Following our event in Dundee in June 2004, we agreed at our meeting on 15 September 2004 to have a rolling programme of events with the aim of raising awareness of the public petitions system among those groups and individuals who are traditionally marginalised from the political process.

The committee held its second participation event on 29 November at the Highland Council chambers in Inverness. The event was attended by 60 representatives from local community and equality groups and from voluntary sector organisations. Positive feedback has been received. A draft report on the Inverness event has been circulated. Do members have any comments or recommendations on the report?

I was one of those involved in the Inverness event, which I found to be a worthwhile experience, like the event in Dundee. It was gratifying that so many people responded to our invitation to find out more about what we do. The event also helped change people's attitude. That is reflected in the comments in the report, which say things such as, "I never thought we could have contact with the Parliament, so it is good that the Parliament comes out and makes contact with us." I was particularly struck by one comment, which said:

"This session has reduced my habit of cynicism to a manageable level."

On that basis alone—although we do not know how the person has coped since then—the event must have been worth while.

The comments indicate how people can be surprised in a positive way about what our committee does and about the links that they can have with it. Therefore, I am glad that we have established a policy of having other such events this parliamentary session, although where those events should be held is a matter of discussion. As a member, I also got a lot out of the event. It was a two-way process.

Absolutely. I also learned a lot from the Inverness event. I listened more than I talked to the community groups that were present.

As Mike Watson pointed out, we gave a commitment to hold such an event in each of the Parliament's electoral regions. We have done two, but we still have six to go, so we will need to identify appropriate venues and times for future events. I think that the clerks are already working on where our next event might take place, but that the location has not yet been firmed up.

I suspect that the deputy convener might have a hand in the location.

We are working on the basis that the next event will be held in Ayr.

Surely not.

Our next event will be in Ayr, if that can be arranged.

Obviously, such events are also a learning process for us. Do members have any other comments?

The event in Inverness went down very well and was quite a success. It received a lot of favourable comment in the press as well as from the people who attended. The process of taking such events into peripheral areas is to be welcomed. I leave it to the convener and to Dr Jim Johnston to arrange where the events should be held.

I want to comment on the location of the next event—I am not against it, so John Scott need not panic—which it has been suggested will be Ayr in the South of Scotland region. Given that the West of Scotland region takes in a good part of Ayrshire, perhaps we should approach West of Scotland organisations that operate in Ayrshire. Such organisations might be more likely to attend an event in Ayr than somewhere such as Strathkelvin and Bearsden.

That is just a practical issue.

It is just that people in the West of Scotland region who live in Ayrshire will be more likely to attend an event in Ayr. It might be good to invite such people to our Ayr event.

I understand what you are saying, but I think that the issue is one of practicality. Perhaps you could ask Jim Johnston about the practicalities of reaching communities that are beyond the region that we are visiting. However, that is useful information to know.

Campbell Martin makes a good point about how the regions are structured. Many people would be surprised to find what areas are encompassed by the South of Scotland region, which I seem to recall has a horseshoe shape.

We previously discussed trying to identify where petitions come from so that we can work out, by a process of deduction, where they do not come from. Perhaps we could try having regions within regions when we hold our events so that we can attract more people from those areas from which, for whatever reason, we have not received a proportionate number of petitions.

That is a useful suggestion.

According to some of the comments in the report, there was not much evidence that petitions have ultimately been successful. Perhaps we should highlight two or three petitions that have been successful.

It is always good to do that.

As well as visiting geographical areas, we should also consider engaging with different communities of interest. Scotland has a great number of disadvantaged communities of interest, such as disability groups and ethnic minority groups. As well as holding events based on geography, we should reflect on whether we need to bring together people from across Scotland who are disadvantaged in a particular way.

Again, that point is worth considering.

Perhaps the convener and clerks should speak to the Equal Opportunities Committee, which is carrying out an inquiry on disability that involves going out to the different regions. We would not want the two committees to clash by inviting the same groups. That committee will be going out and about in April next year.

The clerks are obliged to check that that does not happen, but such practicalities are always worth taking into consideration.

Do members agree that we should publish the report on our website and circulate it to those who attended the event?

Members indicated agreement.

I thank everyone for their attendance. I wish everyone a very happy Christmas and a good new year.

Meeting closed at 11:30.