Topical Questions
Alcohol Minimum Unit Price (European Commission)
The European Commission submitted a detailed opinion on minimum unit pricing for alcohol on 26 September. We are required to respond to the issues that are raised in the opinion, which are confidential, by 27 December. We are confident that we can demonstrate that minimum pricing is justified on the basis of public health and social grounds, and we will continue to press the case for it in the strongest possible terms.
My understanding is that, as minimum unit pricing is a public health measure to tackle the real problem that we face in Scotland from binge drinking and alcohol misuse, it is consistent with European Union law, provided that the measure is proportionate. Does the cabinet secretary consider that to be the case?
We have always been clear that, in order to comply with EU law, we need to demonstrate that minimum pricing is justified on public health grounds and that it is the most proportionate means by which to deliver our policy objectives.
Does the cabinet secretary, like me, welcome the support that the Scottish Parliament’s groundbreaking alcohol and minimum pricing legislation has received from the EU-level charities, groups and organisations that are concerned about alcohol abuse, such as the European public health alliance? Will he therefore continue to press the case for minimum pricing because it is the right and responsible thing to do if we want to improve the public health of the people of this country and reduce the social harm that is caused by alcohol misuse?
I whole-heartedly welcome the support from EU-level charities and organisations that work in this field. The cross-Europe support from public health professionals mirrors the support that we have received at home from our healthcare groups and professionals, our doctors, our nurses, our police and our public health experts—those who work daily with the terrible effects of alcohol misuse. That is one reason among many why we remain firm in the belief that a minimum price per unit of alcohol is the most effective and efficient way to tackle alcohol misuse in Scotland.
The action by the European Commission on minimum unit pricing and the challenge in the Court of Session notwithstanding, does the cabinet secretary recognise that there is much more that we can do to tackle alcohol abuse? On that basis, can I commend to him the member’s bill of my colleague, Richard Simpson, which contains a range of measures to tackle alcohol abuse, and ask him for an early meeting so that we can take that work forward together?
The Scottish Government has always made it clear that minimum unit pricing is part of a wider package of dealing with this significant problem. We will, of course, consider any proposals that are put forward, including those of Professor Simpson. I am always glad to meet any member of this Parliament, from any side of the chamber, to discuss their ideas and proposals.
What discussions has the minister had with the United Kingdom Government and Lord Wallace of Tankerness in this regard?
The clear indications from Lord Wallace and others are that we have the moral and active support of the UK Government in dealing with this matter at a European level. I would like to put on record my gratitude to the UK Government for that support—obviously, what happens north of the border will impact on its proposals for south of the border. Therefore, if we can speak with one voice and ensure that we win this battle in Europe, that will be good for people not only in Scotland but throughout the United Kingdom.
Proposed Smart Travel Card Scheme
Smart ticketing is not new to Scotland. Smart cards have been used to successfully deliver concessionary travel on buses for more than two years. There are more than 1.2 million card holders, and 146 million journeys are undertaken each year using the cards, so one in three of all bus journeys is already smart.
I thank the minister for that answer but, in the press releases that went out yesterday and in the comments that she made, a consistent comparison was made with the Oyster card system, raising expectations. It is my belief that the saltire card will effectively be a prepayment card and as such will not offer the same standard of service as the Oyster card. When do we expect the system to be of a comparable standard?
The card is capable of operating in that way. I am sure that I do not need to tell Alex Johnstone and others in the chamber that there are, rightly or wrongly, appreciable differences between the organisation of the public transport networks in Scotland and London.
The minister has made it clear how valuable the system could be to visitors to Scotland. We are all of course aware that 2014 will see the Commonwealth games and the Ryder cup take place in Scotland, with huge numbers of visitors coming here. Can the minister offer me a guarantee that this system will be beyond the pilot stage, up and running, and tried and tested before those events take place?
This is an important point: it is not necessarily the intention to have the system in use for the Commonwealth games. I have made clear my desire to see the system move forward as quickly as possible, but the member will understand that the Commonwealth games are approaching quickly and that it is important that we do not have something that is being tested in an event as important as the Commonwealth games.
Clearly, the issue of timescale is important. When does the cabinet secretary expect the pilot projects will be evaluated?
I will make more announcements in this regard over the next period, but my intention is to get the pilot projects up and running on a rolling basis as soon as possible. I would expect that to happen early in 2013, if not later this year.
I, too, welcome the Deputy First Minister’s announcement of a new travel smart card, although I regret that, at this stage, the scheme does not go as far as including various fare structures to make travelling more convenient and cheaper, as was called for. How will the Deputy First Minister ensure that users of the saltire card will enjoy fairer fares to combat the ever-increasing cost of public transport?
I go back to my answer to Alex Johnstone. The point that bears repetition is that the card is already in existence—it has 1.2 million users, as it is currently used for the concessionary fare scheme across Scotland. Therefore, the card is not new.
In making comparisons with London, the minister makes a good case for regulating the buses properly in Scotland so that we can have integrated ticketing and not just cashless payment. There is a risk that a mere cashless payment system that is based on the national entitlement card gives us the minimum level of functionality for the maximum impact on passengers’ privacy. Does the minister agree that a cashless payment card creates no rationale at all for collecting data about the journeys that people make? Will she have an immediate discussion with the Scottish Information Commissioner to ensure the most rigorous possible application of the Government’s privacy principles in the design of the scheme?
Patrick Harvie is right to point to what is a real issue and one on which we need to strike the right balance. I am fully with him in relation to the protection of privacy. The other side—I say this simply to give the other side of the debate—is the argument that the ability of transport providers to look at people’s journey patterns allows those providers to better tailor their services.
Will the cabinet secretary confirm whether flexible ticketing, particularly for students who travel, for example, between Ayrshire and Glasgow, will or could be part of the pilot or final scheme?
The short answer to that is yes. The slightly longer answer is that the phase 1 demonstrator projects are aimed at testing several types of smart tickets. They will include, for example, school transport; transport and tickets to help young people to get back into employment; single-operator day returns or weekly, monthly or annual tickets; multi-operator versions of the same things; and rail season tickets. In saying yes to John Scott, I hope that I am giving him the sense that, through the demonstrator projects, we are looking to test a number of uses of the scheme to inform our approach.