General Questions
Seabird Breeding Colony Special Protection Areas
Scottish Natural Heritage operates a site condition monitoring programme for protected areas in Scotland to determine the condition of the natural features. It uses a range of information sources to assess the condition of special protection areas for seabirds, including national population censuses and breeding surveys.
The minister will be aware that one of the SPAs with marine extension is St Abb’s Head, which is in the region that I represent. It supports in excess of 20,000 seabirds and is truly a site of European importance. Does the minister accept that, if the monitoring of the site is not sufficiently robust, licences for marine activities could be erroneously granted and negative impacts on the seabird populations might result?
The member makes the point that, if we have insufficient information, we might not deal with proposals for developments correctly. I accept that point. That is why we monitor the activities of seabirds. I know, in particular, that the Isle of May, near St Abb’s Head, is an important seabird colony, particularly for gannets.
The Isle of May, in my constituency, is a significant seabird and grey seal colony. However, the long-term trend of decline in the number of seabirds continues. What further action can the Government take to address the decline in the seabird population, given its role in creating sustainable tourism?
I absolutely recognise the value of birds as a tourism icon, as well as the fact that they contribute to biodiversity. Ironically, some of the decline in the Firth of Forth has been attributable to the cleaning of the sewage outputs. Less sewage is being discharged into the Forth, which means that there is less food for some of the seabirds. Sometimes, the unintended side effects of good environmental interventions can result in situations such as the one that the member describes.
Does the minister accept that the health of seabird populations is also a barometer of the health of the marine food chain, and that that applies equally to fish stocks? Is enough research and development being done on the subject?
Minister: seabirds.
Seabirds and perhaps also water birds are affected by the marine environment and, to varying degrees, rely on sea stocks. When we had a closure in the North Sea some 20 years ago, it was interesting to see that the puffin population rose because there was greater availability of fish.
Single Police Service (Governance and Local Accountability)
We have set out our proposals for governance and accountability in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Bill, which I am delighted to say has been brought to Parliament for its consideration this week. The bill will provide for clear and effective governance, strengthening the connection between police services and communities and involving the Parliament and many more elected members across Scotland.
Is the cabinet secretary aware of the concerns that police and staff organisations have expressed about the costs that the new single police force will have to bear, which are estimated to include £25 million-plus in VAT and £80 million in redundancy costs? Can he offer any information to current employees that will give them comfort for the future?
With regard to VAT, Mr Pearson will know from his experience on the Justice Committee and his vast experience in a previous life that VAT was a source of concern at the Scottish Police Services Authority. Currently, a single Scottish police and fire service will have a VAT liability. We have written to the Treasury about that and we await a reply. Frankly, it seems ridiculous that a public sector organisation that does such valuable work should lose money through the actions of the Treasury.
The cabinet secretary will be aware that an issue has been raised as part of the consideration of a single police force about ensuring that we have a transparent, open and independent complaints system. How will that be achieved when a single police force is created?
The Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland will get additional functions that will allow it to investigate serious incidents and other matters involving the police, which will include those in which there is an indication that a criminal offence has been committed. The Crown Office will still direct those investigations, whereas the others will be carried out at the request of the chief constable or the Scottish police authority. Allegations and complaints about senior officers may also be investigated by the commissioner at the request of the authority.
Tribunals (Devolution)
The Lord Chancellor wrote to me on 31 October outlining the basis of proposals to transfer the administration of reserved tribunals to Scottish ministers and responsibility for judicial leadership to the Lord President. Discussions are on-going at official level on the detail of the proposals, and we expect the United Kingdom Government to consult in the near future.
Does the minister share my concern about the UK Government’s proposals to introduce a charge of up to £1,750 that must be paid before an individual can take a case to an employment tribunal? Does she agree that that amounts to an attack on fundamental employment rights, particularly of lower-paid workers, and that it demonstrates the need for not just the management but the control of charging of employment tribunals to be fully devolved to the Scottish Parliament sooner rather than later?
The member will have noted from my answer that the current discussions revolve around the devolving of the administration of the tribunals. Fees and the setting of fees will not be devolved—that is a reserved matter and will remain so regardless of any administrative reform, so the Scottish Government will have no influence on that. It may well have taken a different view from that of the UK Government, but it will be unable to do so until after the autumn of 2014.
Independence Referendum (Franchise)
The Scottish Government has a mandate to hold a referendum on independence and will do so in the autumn of 2014. We will publish our proposals in a consultation document on 25 January. It is for the Scottish Parliament to determine the franchise and other details of the referendum, not the unelected House of Lords.
Does the cabinet secretary agree that it is a negation of democracy for Baroness Taylor of Bolton, a member of an unelected body, to attempt to interfere in the independence referendum franchise, given that that body lacks accountability to the Scottish Parliament or anyone else and is stuffed full of Labour and Tory appointees, hereditary peers and 26 Church of England bishops? I am heartened that he agrees that it is this Parliament, which is elected by the people of Scotland, that should determine the franchise.
Perhaps I should say that I agree with the general thrust of Mr Gibson’s question. [Laughter.]
I thank the minister for his response that there will be a publication next week. In the light of the discussion that we have just had on the Gould report and on having everything settled six months before we have elections or referendums, will the date of the proposed referendum be published next week so that we can all have a proper plan?
I am afraid that Ms Boyack will have to wait just a little bit longer and hear what we say next week, but she can be absolutely sure that the referendum that we bring forward will be of the highest international standard, and of course it will agree with the Gould recommendations.
Young Carers
With partners, we are taking a number of important steps to maintain momentum on identifying and supporting young carers. They include the Eryc and Trayc mascots and the associated toolkit for primary schools, a planned toolkit for secondary schools, work with colleges and universities, a resource for general practitioners throughout Scotland, inclusion of a question on young carers in the school census, and identification through six young carer authorisation card pilot areas.
I thank the minister for that full reply. He will be aware that young carers often have specific issues that relate to school work. The extra pressures in dealing with both school and caring responsibilities can be both isolating and exhausting for young carers. What resources are targeted specifically at that area?
The member raises an important issue, which has been raised with me directly by a number of young carers. It is vital that young carers can continue to participate in the education system in a way that allows them to fulfil their potential. That is why we committed some £100,000 to taking forward the Eryc and Trayc initiative through the website and toolkit that were on display in the Parliament last week. A key part of that is to ensure not only that young carers are identified in our education system but that young people in our schools understand the role that young carers have, and that teachers are educated about the difficulties that some young carers face. Whether they are late in arriving at school because of their caring responsibilities or late with an assessment, teachers should recognise and understand those difficulties.
The Scottish Government pledged in its document “Getting it Right for Young Carers: The Young Carers Strategy for Scotland 2010-2015” to improve respite resources for young carers. What progress has been made in that area, specifically in Aberdeenshire, where there are more than 3,000 young carers?
Much of the respite that is provided to cared-for people is organised through local authorities, but we have provided £2 million for the short break fund in order to provide short breaks across Scotland, and some £290,000 of that has been provided specifically for respite facilities and short breaks for young carers. It is important that local authorities, in looking at how they support cared-for people, recognise the role that young carers play and provide them with the resources and support that they require in order to continue their caring role.
Retail Sector (Support)
The Scottish Government recognises the vital role that the retail sector plays in employment and increasing sustainable economic growth. That is why we continue to support it. Almost two thirds of Scottish retail premises are benefiting from a business rates reduction through one of our rate relief schemes, including the small business bonus scheme.
Is the cabinet secretary aware of the news that d2 Jeans, La Senza and now Peacocks, which owns Bonmarché, are all going into administration? Retail is not one of the Government’s key growth industries, but the sector is a major employer in my region. Nowhere is that more apparent than in East Kilbride, where all those firms have outlets in our shopping centre.
I acknowledge the serious issues that Margaret McCulloch raises in connection with the prospects for individual retail outlets. I am aware that discussions continue in relation to some of the companies to which she referred. The hope is that further retail opportunities will arise from that dialogue. The Government will be happy to assist in any way that it can to resolve questions, particularly in our dealings with the banking sector.
Campus Police Officers
The latest recorded figures from 2011 show that 58 campus police officers were deployed across Scotland to cover 63 secondary schools. Those figures are being audited and we expect them to have increased.
I recently attended a meeting at which the value of campus police officers in schools was discussed. The campus police officer who is based at Firrhill high school in my constituency has built up positive relationships with pupils that have improved their welfare and provided them with support, which has helped to prevent offending behaviour. Given the Scottish Government’s preventative spend agenda, does the cabinet secretary agree that it would be better to spend the income from Scottish court fines on providing additional police officers for campus duty than to send it to the Treasury in London?
I agree with the member about the benefits of campus officers. I spoke to the campus officer at Gracemount high school in my constituency on Monday.
Job Losses (Vector Aerospace)
Through Scottish Development International and Scottish Enterprise, the Scottish Government is having regular meetings with Vector Aerospace to secure new areas of business growth for Almondbank in Perth. Tailored advice and support for staff who face the loss of their job will be made available through the Government’s partnership action for continuing employment initiative.
I know that the cabinet secretary will be aware of the importance of the Almondbank site to Perthshire and of the highly skilled and committed workforce there. I therefore ask him to reflect on what further steps he could take to seek to ensure a future for the site.
I directly associate myself with Annabelle Ewing’s remarks. The Vector Aerospace site at Almondbank in Perthshire has a long and substantial engineering tradition, and many of my constituents and those of my colleague Roseanna Cunningham are employed at the facility. The Government is committed to ensuring that their skills, talents and attributes can have continuing involvement in business and employment activity in Perthshire, and I assure the member that ministers will do everything that they can through our agencies and other interventions to support the continuation of that important engineering tradition.