Official Report 71KB pdf
Saltire (PE512)
Item 2 is consideration of petition PE512, on the saltire. Members have in front of them all the relevant material on the petition, which has been considered at some length by a number of committees.
The convener is right. We do not have the power to pass a piece of legislation to set such a recommendation in statute. In any case, with only five weeks to go until the end of the session, I do not think that we would get the legislation through.
I agree.
I concur with the other members of the committee. This is a serious and important matter. There is some misunderstanding about the purposes and uses of certain flags and about the difference between the lion rampant and the saltire. The lion rampant is, of course, not the flag of Scotland but the flag of Scotland's royal family. It is important that we give some guidance on the matter, although I agree with Mike Russell that it would be inopportune to try to put it into statutory effect. Perhaps that could be given fresh thought after the elections in May.
I agree with the suggestion that has been made. It was never the petitioner's intention that there should be legislation. He recognised that guidance and rules were all that was needed to bring us into line with almost every other country in the world where such simple guidance has been given about flags.
The more members speak, the more I feel that I need clarification. We are not necessarily endorsing any guidance that is out there; we are simply offering the committee's view that Pantone 300 seems the most appropriate colour, on the basis of all the evidence that has been presented to us.
Yes.
On that basis, I am quite happy. If people want to issue guidance, that is a matter for them. However, as far as the committee is concerned, the issue is the colour.
And the committee's view is that the most appropriate colour is Pantone 300. If anyone was consulting anyone, they would say that the Scottish Parliament's Education, Culture and Sport Committee believes that the colour is Pantone 300.
Absolutely.
I go along with the views that have been expressed by other committee members. However, I want us to emphasise the fact that this is an advisory decision that we are making. We ought not to encourage people to try to enforce the colour on others who are not willing to accept it.
Let us be clear about what we are saying. We are not giving a verdict on all the other information that we have received over the past three days; we are specifically giving our view on the proposed colour of the saltire—not on anything else that we have or have not received. On the basis of the views that have been expressed by committee members, we are happy to say that the colour that is nearest to azure blue is Pantone 300.
I appreciate that, convener, but I will give some clarification. My whole life has been involved with colour. It is a good recommendation that you are making. As the Parliament is the body that is responsible for the Scottish flag, the petitioner has sought the Parliament's recommendation of a colour as guidance for people who manufacture flags or prints.
I must say to Gil Paterson that, having read all the evidence that has been given to the other committees, members are aware of the evidence that has been given about colours. That is why there is unanimity around the table that the correct colour is Pantone 300. That is the recommendation that we will make on the petition.
The last comment that I want to make is to thank the committee on behalf of the petitioner, who is present today. I am grateful for the research that has been carried out by the committee. It is gratifying that members have put so much work in that they understand the issue before people come to the committee. Some good work has been done today. Thank you very much.
If members are happy with that, I thank Mr Reid for his persistence in bringing the matter before the committee and for ensuring that the matter has gone through all the relevant channels. We now have a recommendation from the committee for the future manufacture of flags.
We should also thank Gil Paterson for his substantial work, and for all his colours.
He may take all his colour charts with him.
He did not manage to sell any paint today.