Plenary, 16 Sep 1999

Meeting date: Thursday, September 16, 1999

Official Report 851KB pdf

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Scottish Parliament Thursday 16 September 1999

[THE PRESIDING OFFICER opened the meeting at 09:31]

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I ask you to accept without notice motion S1M-00158 relating to Continental Tyres. That motion is available in the chamber office and at the back of this room. The motion says:

That the Parliament calls upon the Scottish Executive to take up with the Continental Tyre Company the need to give their Scottish employees parity of treatment by offering them an equivalent package to that offered to and received by their former employees in Semprit in Ireland, in view of the impending visit on Friday to Newbridge of Dr Holzbach, senior executive member of the Continental Tyre Company.

I submit that this matter is urgent as last-minute negotiations between the work force and management will take place tomorrow. In view of the fact that 40 per cent less is being offered to the employees in Scotland than was offered to employees in Ireland, I submit that it is right and appropriate that the Parliament should be enabled to express a view.

Under standing orders 8.2.6 and 5.5.4, I am prepared to accept motion S1M-00158. If the Parliament decides to allow a debate on the motion without notice, it will have to take place at 12 o'clock today, which means that the non-Executive business that is set down today will have to be cut short. It is entirely for the chamber to decide whether it will take this motion.

The question is, that motion S1M-00158 be taken at this meeting of the Parliament. Are we all agreed?

Motion agreed to.

The debate on motion S1M-00158 will take place at 12 o'clock. I ask the business managers to consider the lists of names that have been submitted for the transport debate, as it will not be possible now for all to be called.