External Screening Facility
The contractor’s progress to date has included establishing the construction site, the temporary removal of parts of the glass roof over the concourse and wall panels, excavating and laying the foundations, and constructing the steel and concrete system frame. The project is on track and within budget.
David Stewart will realise that members are sensitive about the costs attached to such projects. Has the corporate body received an up-to-date threat assessment of the situation for which the facility was designed, and can it share with the Parliament any details of that assessment?
The corporate body has received clear and consistent expert security advice that, in light of current threats, it is highly advisable for the Parliament to construct an external security facility. Although Graeme Pearson will understand more than most that I cannot go into the detail of that advice, there are other indicators such as the number of incidents that our own security staff deal with. For example, more than 1,500 sharp objects such as knives were retained in the public access area during 2012. The risk profile has changed from organised groups to obsessed individuals.
Voting Consoles
The current sound and voting system was installed during the 2011 summer recess and has in place a 10-year support and maintenance contract, so we have no current plans to upgrade it.
Ms Fabiani will recall that, by pressing a few buttons together on the previous consoles, members could work out how many speakers remained to speak in a debate and therefore when to be back in the chamber for closing speeches. That was preferable to the Presiding Officer having to herd people back into the chamber for closing speeches. Is it possible to do that on the current consoles?
That is an interesting point. I remember that that was the case with the previous consoles. However, the agreement to upgrade the consoles and the specifications to which they were to be upgraded and for what we would see on the screens were decisions taken by the previous corporate body and Presiding Officers. Those decisions are reflected in what we have here today.
Living Wage
The SPCB is highly supportive of the principles of the living wage and, as the employer of parliamentary service staff, we lead by example in paying all parliamentary staff above the living wage.
The member will be aware that I have previously raised the issue of the living wage at corporate body question time, particularly with regard to contract staff in the Parliament building. Will he update us on progress in that regard and on whether that work applies to members’ offices? I am sure that he would appreciate that it would be good practice for all members to pay their staff the living wage.
Not only do I recognise the lead that Kezia Dugdale has taken on the issue, I recall that she secured a debate on the issue during living wage week and, due to laryngitis, had to have John Park step into her shoes. I am glad that she has refound her voice to continue her campaign on the issue.
There is a large facilities management company that does work for some of the Ayrshire councils. Its revenues last year were £2 billion. It paid corporation tax of 1.1 per cent, in comparison with standard corporation tax of 23 per cent. Will the SPCB ensure that full due diligence is done on all companies that we deal with so that they comply with corporate tax requirements?
I am not convinced that that ties in with Kezia Dugdale’s question. Mr McArthur, do you want to make any comment?
I will try to be helpful. It is certainly an issue that has been raised by a number of members in the past. There are limits to what the corporate body can do about the tax arrangements through which individual companies may seek to organise their affairs. Nevertheless, I reassure the chamber that we exert thorough due diligence in contractual arrangements before signing any contract.
John Wilson has pressed his request-to-speak button. Is that for a supplementary on this issue?
Yes. Does the corporate body monitor how many interns are recruited at any one time in Parliament?
We will have a clear figure of the number of interns in the Parliament’s departments. It is perhaps slightly more difficult to get an accurate figure for the number of MSPs’ interns. Although I am happy to liaise with John Wilson on how we could capture that figure to see what information might flow from such an exercise, I go back to the point that I made in response to Kezia Dugdale: the arrangements between individual members and their staff are really a matter for members.
SPCB Questions
I ask other members if they would mind stopping conversations in the chamber.
Including the six questions lodged for answer today, 32 oral questions to the SPCB have been lodged in the current parliamentary session. Twenty of the 26 questions lodged prior to today have been taken at SPCB question time, with the remaining six having received written answers.
Would the corporate body consider either increasing the number of corporate body question sessions in Parliament or extending the length of those sessions?
I pay tribute to John Wilson’s recognition that corporate body questions are one of the unheralded success stories of the Parliament. I am sure that he has the backing of many members in that regard.
Accessibility of Parliamentary Campus (People with Autistic Spectrum Disorder)
The SPCB is committed to an on-going programme of continuous improvement for accessibility and makes every effort to involve groups of disabled people in identifying where improvements can be made within the parliamentary campus.
The member might be aware of the National Autistic Society’s process of accreditation, which the Northern Ireland Assembly achieved in 2012. That involved changes being made to the Assembly building, such as the provision of a quiet room, changes to signage and warning signs being placed on such things as noisy hand-dryers. It also involved the provision of training to front-line staff and the creation of autism champions. Is the SPCB looking at how it can work towards achieving accreditation for this establishment?
I am very grateful to Mr McDonald for raising the issue with us. An initial meeting has taken place with the National Autistic Society and we are now exploring the matter further with the relevant business areas across the Parliament to identify whether we are meeting the needs of people with autism and where further development would be beneficial.
Catering Contractor (Traceability of Meat)
There have certainly been a few recent discussions with our catering contractor, which has assured us that all meat products served at the Parliament have full traceability and are either red tractor or Quality Meat Scotland certified. That certification requires the meat product to be fully audited from the source to the plate.
The Soil Association’s food for life catering mark provides independent assurance on traceability and quality, not just of meat but of all food groups. Already one in 10 schools in Scotland hold the mark. Kitchens in the City of Edinburgh Council, NHS Lothian and the University of Edinburgh are working towards knowing where all their food comes from. Will the SPCB consider requiring the Parliament’s catering contractor to work towards achieving the Soil Association quality mark and join in that good work, which looks to improve food quality, localise our food and strengthen our local economy?
Certainly. Our current catering contract requires food standards to comply with certain assurance schemes that include animal welfare standards, such as the red tractor and Quality Meat Scotland standards. There are also the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals freedom food standards.
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