Good afternoon. The first item of business this afternoon is consideration of motion S4M-11926, in the name of Nicola Sturgeon, on the appointment of a junior Scottish minister. Members should note that the question on the motion will be put immediately after the debate and not at decision time. I call Nicola Sturgeon to move the motion. First Minister, you have about five minutes.
I rise to speak to and move the motion in my name, which asks the Parliament to agree that Fiona McLeod be appointed as a junior Scottish minister. As members will be aware, the reason for the appointment is that, as of today, Aileen Campbell, the Minister for Children and Young People, is going on maternity leave from her ministerial duties.
I have made very clear something that I think is supported across the chamber: it is a priority for me during my tenure as First Minister to ensure greater opportunities for women—indeed, to shatter the glass ceiling. An essential part of that is encouraging and supporting parental leave, especially maternity leave, as a way of enabling working parents to care for young children and then return to the workplace.
I believe that this is the first occasion in the lifetime of the Scottish Parliament on which a Scottish minister has taken maternity leave. It is absolutely standard practice in other working environments for women to go on maternity leave and have somebody else take over their duties, so I really hope that Aileen’s example contributes in a small way to making politics more normal. The Parliament should never be exempt from what we see as good practice in other workplaces; instead we should seek to set a clear example wherever possible.
I am therefore delighted on behalf of—I am sure—the whole chamber to wish Aileen, Fraser and Angus well over the coming months. We very much look forward to seeing Aileen back next year.
I can also confirm to Parliament that Aileen has chosen to give up 59 per cent of her ministerial salary entitlement during her planned period of maternity leave, which means that she will receive, on an averaged-out basis, the statutory maternity pay equivalent of her ministerial salary, which is 90 per cent of salary for six weeks, followed by weekly payments of £138.18. She has requested that the amount that she is foregoing be allocated to the Scottish Government’s children and families budget. [Applause.]
I am absolutely delighted to recommend Fiona McLeod for appointment as acting Minister for Children and Young People for the period of Aileen’s maternity leave. Fiona became a member of the Parliament in 1999, in the first session, serving as shadow deputy minister for education, children and sport. Since returning to the Parliament in 2011, she has served extremely well as a senior whip and as a member of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee. Outside her political work, and among many other roles and achievements, she was a volunteer founder of and youth worker with Westerton junior youth club.
Fiona is an extremely experienced politician, with a deep understanding of the challenges facing children, young people, parents and carers. I think that she will do an excellent job in her new portfolio. She will work very closely with all her ministerial colleagues, including, of course, Angela Constance, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning. All in all, I think that she is extremely well qualified to stand in over the next few months for an extremely able minister.
The appointment ensures that a highly able minister will be in place to look after an immensely important set of responsibilities during Aileen’s maternity leave. Since taking over as First Minister, I have said that opportunities for young people and making sure that we give them the best start in life are extremely important. It is therefore vital that we have somebody with Fiona’s capability steering those responsibilities.
Without further ado, it gives me enormous pleasure to move,
That the Parliament agrees that Fiona McLeod be appointed as a junior Scottish Minister.
14:34
On behalf of Scottish Labour, I join the First Minister in supporting the motion and welcoming Fiona McLeod to her position as a junior Scottish minister.
As Nicola Sturgeon said, this is a unique arrangement, but there is no doubt that it is the correct one. In taking it forward, the Scottish Government is showing leadership on the issue. It not only gives Aileen Campbell the appropriate time to be with her family at this crucial time in their lives, but ensures that another minister is in place to deal with the important issues in the brief.
On behalf of Scottish Labour, I wish Aileen Campbell all the best as she goes off on maternity leave. It is important that she has the time to spend with her husband Fraser and her son Angus. We hope that everything goes well, and we wish her well.
There is no doubt that there are important issues for Fiona McLeod to address in moving into the portfolio, albeit temporarily. They include access to education, pushing up attainment and improving literacy levels.
One thing that Fiona McLeod mentions frequently when she speaks in the Parliament is her experience as a librarian. From my family and my daughters, I see that reading books—either paper books or books on Kindle—improves young people’s vocabulary and their educational opportunities. I am sure that, in her time in the role, Fiona McLeod will bring to bear her experience as a librarian and her knowledge of the importance of supporting books and reading.
Fiona McLeod is a great supporter of the cross-party group on fair trade. We both serve on that group, and at a recent meeting we were involved in the promotion of fair trade footballs. We had some high jinks with the footballs and some good photographs were taken. I only hope that, when she takes up her position in her ministerial office, she does not try any keepy-uppy with the footballs. That might upset the staff and the civil servants.
On behalf of Scottish Labour, I welcome the unique decision that the Scottish Government has taken. I wish Aileen Campbell and her family all the best in the period ahead, and I welcome Fiona McLeod to her position and wish her all the best of good luck.
14:37
I have to say with all candour that I thought that we had approved this appointment when we dealt with the previous series of ministerial appointments. I can understand that there may have been an oversight on the part of the First Minister. She might have been slightly distracted. After all, at the time she was in the midst of her rock-Scot-nat-chick stadia tour, campaigning to become a cult. I watched the tour with interest, because one of her MSP colleagues tweeted pictures of himself high up in the gallery at the Hydro in Glasgow. I say to the First Minister that I thought that that was so cruel. How could Elvis be in the building but not be allowed to sing? It is tough, Chic—it is tough.
Of course we wish Aileen Campbell every happiness and a very successful addition to the family in due course.
One of the questions that arises from Fiona McLeod’s appointment is, “Who is going to be the official water bearer for the Government front bench?” I hope that some gender balance is to be brought to that responsibility. Joe FitzPatrick looks to me like a champion water bearer, and I think that the responsibility should be formally allocated to him. I hope that we do not have to have an appointments session here in the Parliament to confirm it, but that would be nice.
I wish Fiona McLeod every success for the time that she is in office. She has been appointed as a temporary acting minister. Not necessarily—shine, Fiona, shine! If she does, I pledge this: the Scottish Conservatives will lodge a motion for debate with an “X Factor”-style vote on who gets to stay. I know that the Presiding Officer is looking for new procedures in the Parliament, and here is an opportunity to give Parliament that democratic extension of voice and the opportunity to say who should stay and who should go. I hope that we are able to embrace such a proposal.
I wish Aileen Campbell and Fiona McLeod every success, and the Government, colleagues and friends in Parliament a very merry Christmas and a happy new year.
On each of these occasions, someone has to follow Jackson Carlaw—and I am afraid that Jean Urquhart has the short straw.
14:40
On behalf of the Green and Independent group, I congratulate Aileen Campbell and wish her a safe delivery and a happy Christmas. I think that we all agree that, for her stand-in, there could be no better choice than Fiona McLeod. When I read the list of her ministerial responsibilities, I imagined the long and comprehensive reading list that she might put together for everyone in each of the sectors in question. Her commitment to each of the areas will show, and I believe that she will take the job incredibly seriously. It is one of the most important positions in the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament, and I cannot imagine anyone better in it.
Thank you, Ms Urquhart. We now move to the wind-up speech. I call the First Minister.
14:41
I will be very brief, Presiding Officer.
I thank James Kelly for his remarks. I have to say that I was shocked to hear that Fiona McLeod is a librarian—I have never heard her talk about that before. [Laughter.] Obviously, I jest, but I endorse James Kelly’s comments, particularly his remark about the importance of reading in the development of young minds.
I also thank Jackson Carlaw. I have already carefully considered the issue of a water bearer, which I think is an important appointment. Since my appointment as First Minister, I have tried very hard to do things differently, and today I have taken the decision—and I hope that my ministerial colleagues will bear with me on this—that I am going to start getting my own water. I hope that my ministerial colleagues will follow suit.
As for Mr Carlaw’s innovative proposal, I would expect nothing less from him. I am delighted to learn that he was watching my tour—it is probably the closest he will get to filling a 12,000-seater stadium—but when he suggested an “X Factor”-style vote, Aileen Campbell and Fiona McLeod whispered to me that they elect a dance-off instead. We will go with that, if that is okay.
I also thank Jean Urquhart very much. I will close by echoing her comments: I can think of no one better to fill the post than Fiona McLeod, and I hope that the chamber will give her its unanimous support this afternoon.
That concludes the debate on the appointment of a Scottish junior minister.
The question is, that motion S4M-11926, in the name of Nicola Sturgeon, on the appointment of a junior Scottish minister, be agreed to.
Motion agreed to,
That the Parliament agrees that Fiona McLeod be appointed as a junior Scottish Minister.
As we are moving to the next item of business, I suggest that Ms McLeod’s hugs continue outside the chamber.