Enterprise and Culture Committee, 11 Jun 2003

Meeting date: Wednesday, June 11, 2003

Official Report 112KB pdf

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Interests

The first item of business is declaration of members' interests. Members have received a briefing paper pointing out that they should declare any registrable interest that might give the appearance of prejudicing their ability to participate in a disinterested manner in the committee's proceedings. Given that our proceedings could range widely, that might cover many things. Furthermore, members might want to mention certain non-registrable interests.

I have been racking my brains for any registrable or declarable interests, and the only thing that I can think of is that I am a member of the Saltire Society, which might touch on our cultural discussions.

I have no interests to declare other than those that are already in the register of members' interests.

I am afraid that, under the standing orders, members have to declare any interests on this occasion.

I cannot remember my entry in the register of members' interests.

In that case, I will pass it to you and you can read it out to me.

The committee that I attended this morning did not want this amount of detail.

You have given me Brian Adam's entry. That is not terribly helpful.

Your entry is at the bottom of the page.

I am a life peer and a member of Amicus MSF.

The only interest that might be appropriate in this regard is that I am a member of the Law Society of Scotland.

I am a member of the Transport and General Workers Union and the Co-operative Party, and a trustee of the Fife Historic Buildings Trust. I also continue to be a member, for the present, of the European Union Committee of the Regions.

On former activities that might be relevant, I was a board member of both Scottish Homes and Scottish Enterprise. I was also the chair of the lowland Scotland objective 3 partnership. I was a member of the Kingdom of Fife Tourist Board and I was also a board member of Rosyth 2000, which became Rosyth Regeneration Ltd. Although I no longer continue with those memberships, they might be relevant to future committee discussions.

You clearly have lots of spare time on your hands now.

I declare what appears in the register of members' interests, which is that I have a discount travel ticket from Lothian Regional Transport—that will really influence committee decisions. On non-registrable interests, my family and I have several small shareholdings, none of which is so large that it needs to be declared. However, if anything comes up on any occasion that involves any of the companies in which we have a shareholding, I will declare an interest.

My life is simple by comparison. I think that the only non-registrable interest that I need to declare for the record is that I am a member of both the Transport and General Workers Union and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

I am a teacher of creative writing at the University of Glasgow's Crichton campus. The teaching part has ended, but I still have marking to do. After that is over, that will be it. I am a self-employed partner in Byre Books, which is a second-hand book shop that is part of the Wigtown national book town development. I am also a playwright.

On unremunerated interests, I am a director of the Wigtown Book Town Company and chair of the Wigtown book town festival. I am on the executive of the Writers Guild of Great Britain and I am a member of the Scottish Society of Playwrights. I cannot remember what the official designation is, but I am a sort of lapsed member—one who is so inactive that he does not pay his subscription—of Equity, the actors' association.

I assume that you will have plenty of chances to exercise your skills in the committee.

I have an interest in about 47 acres of land in my home town of Tain in Ross-shire, which might have development value in the future. I own 2,870 £1 shares in the company about which I get teased in the Parliament, namely my brother's cheese-making company. I have 4,102 £1 shares, which is about 20 per cent of the share capital, in Highland Fine Houses Ltd and I am an unpaid director of the company. I am a trustee of the Tain Guildry Trust and the Tain Museum Trust. I am an unpaid director of both Highland Fine Celtic Foods Ltd and the Grey Coast Theatre Co (Helmsdale) Ltd.

I should also declare that I have just been appointed a director, in terms of the companies acts, of the Scottish Parliament and Business Exchange. I am a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and I am a former director, in terms of the companies acts, of both the Highland Festival and the Highland Building Preservation Trust.

I am a member of the trade union, Amicus MSF.

I should say that it is not mere pedantry to go through the declarations. The idea is that before any committee meeting it should be made clear to the public and anyone else who is listening to the proceedings—or reading them afterwards in the Official Report—what members' interests are. Given that this is the committee's first meeting, we felt that we should get all interests out in the open. I think that Mr Adam has remembered something else.

In light of the fact that Mr Stone declared his membership or directorship of the Scottish Parliament and Business Exchange, I think that I, too, ought to declare my membership of that body.

Okay, thank you. That might be relevant.