Japanese National Cricket Teams
The final item of business today is a members’ business debate on motion S4M-06097, in the name of Alex Johnstone, on a welcome to the national cricket teams of Japan. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament extends a warm welcome to the national men and women’s Japan cricket teams who will arrive in Scotland on 30 April 2013 to play in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stirling before visiting the Parliament on 4 May; notes that the head of the Japan Cricket Association, Alex Miyaji, is of part-Scottish heritage; considers that Mr Miyaji has done important work in promoting cricket in Japan, with one of the aims being to promote links between Japan and the UK; congratulates the work of his charity, Cricket For Smiles, which seeks to supply cricket equipment and instruction to areas that were devastated by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami; congratulates a number of young people on their fundraising for the charity; wishes the national teams of Japan an eventful and enjoyable stay in Scotland, and further notes what it considers the positive economic, sporting, cultural and educational relationship that Scotland has enjoyed with Japan for many years, including 65 Japanese companies operating in Scotland employing some 5,000 people and most recently a Japanese Week at the University of Stirling, which further promoted Scotland’s links with Japan.
17:02
Gichou, watashi wa, kitaru cricket nihon daihyou team no Scotland houmon wo kangeisuru kono dougi wo teishutsusuru koto wo, taihen ureshiku omoimasu.
Presiding Officer, it gives me great pleasure to bring the debate to the Parliament this evening, which welcomes the imminent arrival of the national cricket teams of Japan to Scotland.
Many people to whom I have spoken were surprised to hear that cricket is growing in popularity in Japan and even more surprised to learn that the head of the Japan Cricket Association, Mr Naoki Alex Miyaji, is of partially Scottish descent. Mr Miyaji’s mother and grandmother came originally from Dundee, and his grandmother latterly lived in Montrose.
That is perhaps apposite, given that it was a Scot, James Pender Mollison, who founded the first cricket club in Japan in 1868. Just five years earlier, in 1863, the first-ever cricket match in Japan was played between Yokohama merchants and the Royal Navy. Members will be interested to know that the players in the 1863 match went on to the field armed with revolvers—a practice that, I am pleased to say, has not survived in cricketing tradition. The current tour celebrates that important 150th anniversary.
More recently, cricket has flourished in Japan, where there are about 3,000 players and some university clubs, as well as junior and senior clubs. That brings us to the present day. In welcoming the teams from Japan, I highlight the charitable work of the Japan Cricket Association, which has found support across the world, including in Scotland. I am sure that we will hear more about that from Liz Smith later in the debate.
In March 2011, Japan was struck by an earthquake that measured 9.0 on the Richter scale, and the subsequent tsunami saw waves reach 6 miles inland. The effects on the northern part of the country were devastating; estimates of the numbers of dead or missing people reached 20,000, and the effects are still being felt today, as the country is rebuilt.
To assist with the recovery, the Japan Cricket Association has done excellent work through its charity Cricket for Smiles, which seeks to deliver cricket equipment and to offer cricket coaching to children, in the hope of bringing smiles back to those who experienced the catastrophic impact of the natural disaster. Given that many sporting arenas are still being used for temporary housing and that a vast quantity of sports equipment was lost, that work is making a significant contribution. In one area alone, more than 1,000 children have benefited from being introduced to a sport that can be played almost anywhere.
One of Mr Miyaji’s other objectives is to reach out and build links between communities, especially between those in Japan and the United Kingdom. I am sure that the playing of matches in London, Edinburgh, Stirling and Glasgow will achieve that objective; I am also sure that any member who wants to go along to any of the matches, especially those that are held in Scotland, would receive a warm welcome.
That takes me to the second part of my motion, which addresses the continuing links between Scotland and Japan. The year 2013 marks the 400th anniversary of the beginning of diplomatic, trading, scientific and cultural relations between Britain and Japan. When he wrote to King James in 1613, the retired shogun Tokugawa said:
“Though separated by ten thousand leagues of clouds and waves, our territories are, as it were, close to each other.”
In the intervening 400 years, some significant figures stand out in the relationship between our two countries. The best known of those is perhaps Thomas Blake Glover, who was known as the Scottish samurai. He was a son of Fraserburgh who had an immense impact on the industrialisation of Japan, including the introduction of the first steam locomotive, the construction of the first industrial slipway for ship repairs and the introduction of modern mining techniques. His home in Japan is now a museum that attracts more than 2 million visitors a year. In Scotland, he is remembered by the Scottish samurai award, which is presented annually by the National Karate Institute to those who have served Scotland nationally and internationally. Recipients of the award include Lord Charles Bruce, Sir Ian Wood and—would you believe—the First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond.
In the same year as Japan saw its first cricket match, five young samurai who were known as the Choshu five were smuggled out of the country to be educated abroad. One of them, Yamao Yozo, lived in Glasgow and worked at Napier’s shipyard on the Clyde while studying at Anderson’s College. He later became an influential member of the Government of Japan and set up the Imperial College of Engineering. Incidentally, the same Yamao Yozo is believed to be behind the introduction of “Auld Lang Syne” to Japan, where even today it is sung at high school graduations and is played to signal the closing of public parks.
Over the years, many young Scots have travelled to live in Japan as part of the Japan exchange and teaching—JET—programme, which was devised to promote international understanding and to improve foreign language teaching in schools. Here in Scotland, countless thousands have been introduced to Japanese culture by taking up martial arts such as karate, aikido, kendo and judo. In fact, one of Scotland’s leading karate instructors, the Aberdeen-based Ronnie Watt, has been awarded the order of the rising sun by the emperor of Japan.
Educationally, the University of Edinburgh has an excellent Japanese department, which I know has taken an interest in this evening’s debate, and the University of Stirling recently hosted a Japanese week that included lectures, cultural events and a symposium.
I turn to trade. Japan has proved to be an important business partner for the United Kingdom. In Scotland we have 65 Japanese companies employing some 5,000 people across a range of sectors, with growing activity between Scotland and Japan in the field of renewable energy. In 2010, Scottish exports to Japan were valued at £295 million. Scottish Development International has been promoting Scottish goods and produce such as salmon to great effect. In June this year, the UK Government will launch the export to Japan scheme, which will provide free information and multimedia and other resources for UK companies on the Japanese market. That will include information about business opportunities and previous successes by British companies and advice about the Japanese market and how to do business there.
You might wish to consider drawing to a close.
Ultimately, it is often through the medium of sport that people of two countries can come together in understanding and friendship. In this year, which sees so many important anniversaries for Scotland and Japan, I extend a warm welcome to Naoki Miyaji and the men’s and women’s cricket teams. I wish them a pleasant and enjoyable stay in Scotland and look forward to continuing the exciting cultural, educational, sporting and trading links between our two countries.
Gichou, arigato gozaimasu. Thank you, Presiding Officer.
Kanpai—a toast. Thank you very much, Mr Johnstone.
17:11
I welcome the motion. I have to say that I do not do languages, but I have huge admiration for anybody who does. I note that the motion is in consequence of the upcoming tour of the men’s and women’s cricket teams from Japan, who are coming over from 1 to 4 May. I hope that the weather behaves; as someone who has tried to play cricket in Cambridge in June in the snow, I know that the hazards are real. One never knows; it is just possible that it will be at least warm and dry.
When it comes to language, I cannot help wondering quite how the Japanese cope with the language of cricket. It struck me that tickling a chinaman to fine leg might struggle slightly in translation. Goodness knows what the equivalent of nudging and nurdling might be. Of course, being trapped in the gully is an unnatural punishment at the best of times.
As Alex Johnstone has already noted, this is the 150th anniversary of cricket in Japan. I note the connections with my constituency—I had not realised that Montrose was going to figure. Of course, I spent some time in Dundee, which has also been mentioned.
I wonder what the attraction of cricket is. It has changed a bit over the years, but I think that the principles somehow remain. There is an attraction to cricket. Archbishop William Temple apparently described it in 1926 as “organised loafing”, but it has come an awful long way since then. Nonetheless, the basic principle is that one just needs a bat and a ball—and something that will do as a wicket if one insists on getting a batsman out. Therefore, it can be played practically anywhere by anybody of any age who has something with which to hit something. It does not, in principle, involve any contact with one’s opponent, so there should not be too many scratched or broken shins or any animosities as a result. It is therefore a fabulous bit of exercise that can be taken almost anywhere by almost any group. If the wicket does not happen to be flat, one will learn to watch the ball on to the bat, which seems to me to be very good.
I note that the tour matches are in aid of the tsunami and earthquake appeal, so I hope that they are well supported. They really are the kind of things that we should be supporting. Cricket for Smiles is just a wonderful idea.
Cricket is, of course, a sport for the young, the fit and the courageous. I was reflecting on the last time I played it. I was unwise enough to volunteer for a team that was being put together by my business’s development department, which was taking on one of the factories—it was quite a big organisation. What nobody told me was that the factory fast bowler happened to play for the local league. I did score a run, however. When the first ball came down, I kind of got out of the way to the side, put the bat behind me and nudged it down to fine leg and got a run. I was bowled by the next delivery that was sent in my direction. I did not see the ball and decided at that point that it was time to get out of cricket.
With that happy memory, I wish the Japanese teams all the best in Scotland. I am sure that they have a great deal more skill than I ever possessed, and I am delighted that they are coming to Scotland.
17:15
I join my colleagues in welcoming the national men’s and women’s cricket teams of Japan, and I acknowledge that this is the teams’ first official visit to Scotland. I congratulate the head of the Japan Cricket Association, Mr Alex Miyaji, who has done important work in promoting cricket in Japan. I acknowledge Alex’s efforts in promoting links between Japan and the UK in sports. I commend, in particular, his efforts to promote the sporting relationships that Scotland has now enjoyed with Japan for many years.
The impact of the visit for Scotland in international relations, especially in promoting a positive relationship with Japan, is worthy of note. The promotion of intercultural and international ties with Japan will be extended to other countries, and we will continue to build ties to promote cricket and other sports across the world. This type of engagement is significant and will have an important impact on Scotland, especially given the fact that the Commonwealth games are coming to Glasgow, my home town, next year in 2014—something of which I continue to be immensely proud.
I hope that the Japanese teams will enjoy their visit and will return to Japan with fond memories of Scotland, and that their visit will encourage other national teams to visit us. Fostering and strengthening our relationships with Japan and other countries is important, so we welcome the Japanese teams, and we hold up their visit as an example for others to follow in visiting us in the near future.
More important, I would like the teams to take some important messages back home with them: that the people of Scotland are friends of Japan, that we have welcomed their visit and that we hope that many more of their teams will visit us, which will give us an opportunity to host them and welcome them here, so that they can appreciate our fine food and culture and the tapestry of good will that we will extend not only to the Japanese cricket teams, but to other national teams and—even more important—other visitors.
I know that there are huge international issues surrounding the Japanese, particularly with regard to their neighbours. It is therefore even more important that we continue to live life as normally as possible. The fact that the Japanese have decided to make the visit is important. I invite them to look to the future and to continue to live life as normally as possible, thereby encouraging the building of good relations around the world.
The teams who are visiting us are not just teams of cricketers: they are ambassadors. They are immensely welcome, and we genuinely wish them a very successful and fruitful visit. We hope and pray that our cricket team will one day visit Japan, to reinforce the friendship and the relationship that we are hoping to build.
I once again welcome Alex Miyaji, who has done so much work in this field. The fact that he is part Scots makes me happy, as I am more than part Scots and am a cricket fan myself. I appreciate the hard work that he has done for his country.
17:19
It is a real pleasure for me to participate in the debate, and not just because cricket is my hobby. I praise the efforts of my colleague Alex Johnstone and the work that he has done in recent months to boost the cricketing links between Scotland and Japan—and in honing his skills in the Japanese language.
Next week—weather permitting, as Nigel Don says—it will be a huge honour for me to umpire one of the matches that the Japanese women will play on their Scottish tour. In my playing days, I was privileged to play in some internationals but, until now, I have never had the honour of umpiring an international fixture. I am greatly looking forward to it.
That aside, it has been even more of an honour to be part of the Scottish effort that has been supporting the Japan Cricket Association in its quest to provide lots of new equipment and wide-ranging coaching support for the hundreds of children—many of them orphans—who lost everything in the 2011 tsunami. I think that we all remember the appalling scenes and the complete and utter devastation of so many areas around Kesennuma. The buildings of 1,500 schools were either completely swept away or so seriously damaged that children lost their educational opportunities. They also lost any opportunity that they had to take part in sport or any other pastimes.
As Alex Johnstone said, that is where the combined efforts of Alex Miyaji and Shyam Bhatia came into play in providing the financial support to help to turn all that around. Cricket for Smiles is the most amazing charity and although I have not been to Japan to see it in action, I have seen the video footage and the photos of how much it has meant to so many children and the communities that are in the process of being rebuilt. That footage has inspired the girls whom I coach to become extremely enthusiastic in their fundraising efforts to try to help more children to take part, and they look forward to meeting the Japanese teams next Friday to hear more about the developments.
On St Andrew’s day past, I was privileged to be a guest at a dinner in the long room in Lord’s, at which Henry Blofeld of “Test Match Special” was the guest speaker. He had just arrived back from India that morning, following his commentaries on the England versus India test series and he told us, in his usual entertaining style, about the visits that he had made, along with Alastair Cook, the captain of England, and his team, to an Indian charity in Mumbai that was doing similar work to that of Cricket for Smiles. He spoke movingly about the effect that relatively modest sums of money could have in turning around the lives of children who have so little, and I hope that this debate will inspire others to help the cricketing charities around the world that enable others to enjoy what we do in this country.
Prior to that dinner, we were permitted a special tour of the Lord’s pavilion, its museum and library. While being shown some of the most precious memorabilia, we were also shown photographs of some of the most extraordinary places and circumstances in which cricket has been played around the world, which include the Arctic, an Everest base camp and a disused world war 2 airfield in Malta. Little did I know at the time that in that collection are the photographs of the match in 1863 that Alex Johnstone described in his opening speech. The idea of revolvers being part of the kit does much to challenge the descriptions of the 19th century pastoral village green that was so beloved of authors such as Neville Cardus, R C Robertson-Glasgow and Mary Russell Mitford. It conjures up all kinds of images of how the naval players managed to accommodate bat and weapon at the same time, and what might have happened when the naval captain roared out instructions to point.
What I am sure was true then and is certainly true now is that cricket has a role to play in bringing communities together. For those of us who are long-serving and passionate observers of the game, there is something about its spirit—as described by the late much loved Christopher Martin-Jenkins—that inspires the very best in human nature, and that has certainly been true of the philanthropists who have chosen Japanese cricket as the focus of their charities.
It is sometimes said that cricket is an elitist game that was born out of a quintessential Englishness, perfectly in tune with the sounds of leather on willow on long, hazy summer days on a village green, where the only rules were those of Corinthians and gentlemanly conduct. That may be so, in terms of the origins, but nothing could be further from the truth in the coastal areas of Kesennuma. However, when we see the smiles on the children's faces there, we can see exactly what cricket has brought to them. That is why I have great pleasure in supporting the debate.
17:23
I congratulate Alex Johnstone on securing this debate to welcome the national cricket teams of Japan to Scotland for the first time. I am impressed with his grasp of the Japanese language. I am not going to try to emulate it, but I am extremely impressed. Of course, we will check the record to see how accurate he was.
There have been positive and constructive speeches this evening and I am delighted to be able to respond as the Minister for Commonwealth Games and Sport. I am pleased that we have a long and positive relationship with Japan that, as was touched on in the debate, helps us to realise the potential for greater educational, cultural, business and scientific exchanges between Scotland and Japan.
The Scotland trip for the Japan Cricket Association will be a first. It coincides with the 150th anniversary of the first cricket match that was held in Japan. The visit will also see the first ever women’s Cricket Scotland president’s XI fixture take place against the Japanese women’s squad, which—with my equalities hat on—I am also delighted about. I am impressed that Liz Smith will umpire one of those games; I did not know that.
The matches in Glasgow with the Western District Cricket Union men and the Scottish Wildcats women will be of special significance to the Japanese, as Glasgow is, of course, the birthplace of James Pender Mollison, who helped to found the Yokohama Cricket Club, the first cricket club in Japan.
By making the trip to Scotland for these friendly matches, both sides are helping to increase the awareness of Cricket for Smiles, which was set up by Alex Miyaji and which has been referred to often in the debate. I am pleased to hear about his Dundee connections. The programme is focused on acquiring cricket equipment to be distributed to more than 1,500 schools that, as Liz Smith, Alex Johnstone and others said, lost their own equipment and were affected in many other ways by the tsunami in 2011. It is, without doubt, a worthwhile cause that helps to raise awareness of what the victims of the earthquake and the tsunami are facing. In some ways, it also shows the power of sport in helping to rebuild lives and communities.
Without a doubt, Japan has shown a great deal of resilience in recovering from those horrific events. I have been impressed by the Japanese people, their strong sense of unity and the support for one another that they have shown during very difficult times.
Japanese and Scottish folks have some notable sporting links, which have been highlighted by awards recently given by the Japanese Government to two Scottish athletes. In 2011, Mr George Kerr, president of the British Judo Association, was awarded the order of the rising sun with gold rays and rosette in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the promotion of judo, exchange and understanding between Japan and the United Kingdom. In 2010, Mr Ronnie Watt was awarded the order of the rising sun with gold and silver rays for his outstanding contribution to karate and his commitment to strengthening the relationship between Scotland and Japan.
It would be remiss of me not to mention one other Dundee connection. The fantastic architecture of the V and A at Dundee is being designed by the Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, who is renowned for his innovative museum architecture in Japan, including in Nagasaki and at the Suntory whisky museum in Tokyo. I look forward to seeing that fantastic building take shape.
Japanese companies have been investing in Scotland for many years. Alex Johnstone mentioned the fact that 65 Japanese companies in Scotland employ approximately 5,000 people. Scotland’s first Japanese investor was Terasaki Electric, which established operations way back in 1971 and continues to expand to this day. Mitsubishi Electric Air Conditioning Systems Europe in Livingston employs 500 people and has made an on-going contribution to the Scottish economy. This year, it will celebrate its 20th anniversary. Japanese investment has been very important to Scotland for many years, and the growing sectors of renewable energy and research into life sciences are areas in which Japan and Scotland can collaborate and build a strong working relationship.
John Swinney, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth, is building on that relationship. He visited Japan in April last year to meet Japanese investors and discuss their current and future investment in Scotland. He will make a return visit to Japan next month.
Members mentioned the links with Scottish food and drink. Japan is a very important and growing export market that has increased by 25 per cent, from £73 million in 2010 to £91 million in 2011. Scottish whisky forms an important part of those exports, and Scottish smoked salmon and farmed salmon, which is recognised as being the best farmed salmon in the world, is used as sashimi-grade quality in Michelin-starred restaurants and other sushi outlets in Japan. The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment, Richard Lochhead, went with a delegation of some 20 Scottish food and drink companies for an in-market workshop in Japan, so it is clearly a big growth area for us.
In October last year, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Scotland Japanese school in Livingston. The school has been a valuable part of the support that is provided to the Japanese investor community in Scotland; indeed, Scottish Development International has supported the school for many years. The Minister for External Affairs and International Development attended an event at the school to mark that important anniversary. He met members of the Japanese community as well as representatives of Japanese companies.
Scotland offers first-class universities and research facilities. Our universities, including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Heriot-Watt and Stirling, have long-established links with Japan. Those links cover many different disciplines from the sciences, business, history, social sciences and languages. We welcome the fact that Scottish universities are continuing to build on their existing exchange and research programmes with Japanese universities.
The City of Edinburgh Council has long-established links with the city of Kyoto. The governor of Kyoto made a civic visit to Edinburgh in October last year to mark the 15th anniversary of those links. During his visit, the governor met the Minister for External Affairs and International Development to discuss growing interest in Japan about Scottish devolution.
There are a lot of links between Scotland and Japan, sport being an important one. I am keen for us to look at opportunities to share our expertise. We have a fantastic institute of sport and I certainly hope that through these important events and the cricket links that will be established over next few weeks, some longer-term aspirations and ambitions to share sporting connections can be developed.
I reiterate my warm welcome for the first visit of the national cricket teams of Japan to Scotland. I commend Alex Miyaji for setting up the Cricket for Smiles charity, which—as members have said—is helping to raise funds for much-needed equipment for schools. I look forward to working on strengthening and building on the strong sporting, economic, cultural and educational relationships that Scotland has enjoyed with Japan for many years. I am sure that those relationships will only grow in stature over the next few years.
Meeting closed at 17:32.