Chamber and committees

I thank Douglas Ross for bringing the debate to the chamber. It is good to have the opportunity to explore what more can be done to deal with local seagull issues, many of which have been reported to me as well.

I live next to an industrial estate in Inverness, so I absolutely understand the issues that seagulls can cause in residential areas in particular. My mother always used a different name for them that many Highlanders would recognise, but I will not repeat it in the chamber.

I receive a disproportionate number of complaints about these birds in certain communities. It is not just about the noise and the mess that they make, and the fact that they are a nuisance; I am aware that people have been injured and that property has been damaged. Douglas Ross mentioned some extreme incidents, which clearly have a massive impact on people’s lives.

Therefore, it is important that councils and their partners are able to react more quickly when issues emerge. By the time an issue is noticed and then reported and responded to, it is often past the point at which measures such as targeting eggs can be considered and can be effective. From then on, it is hard to row back on the disruption, rather than just limiting how much worse it gets year on year.

NatureScot issues licences as a last resort when there are issues of public safety. However, between there being no issues and the need to take measures as a last resort, there are opportunities for us to prevent the problem from becoming dire. When I look out of my kitchen window, I can see seagulls nesting on the spikes that are there to drive them away, so perhaps we need to reconsider what measures are actually effective and which measures local councils and partners should be allowed to undertake.

I know that the Inverness and Nairn business improvement districts often manage to target seagull issues successfully, and I thank them for that. People do not very often reach out to me, as an MSP, to share good news or positive feedback, but I have heard repeatedly that the BIDs’ work in partnership with tenants associations, businesses and building owners has often meant that good progress is made and people’s contributions are listened to.

However, as somebody who served as a councillor six years ago and was, at that time, involved in the decision—as mentioned in Douglas Ross’s motion—to continue to award funding from the Inverness common good fund to tackle the problem, I know that progress feels very slow. I have also had constituents write in with concerns about the approaches that are taken in destroying eggs. They feel that it is not always a last resort but sometimes the only option available.

In Nairn, one person said to me that it is usually human behaviour that she witnesses that encourages the birds. She often finds people, whether they are locals or tourists, littering or intentionally feeding the seagulls. We cannot blame those birds for moving in when they get an easy meal, but we can do more to discourage such behaviour by humans.

NatureScot has a duty to protect the species. It is rare, but not unheard of, that a constituent wants to kill the birds indiscriminately, with no regard to the species being able to survive. People do not want the extreme and dangerous behaviour that takes place when the situation is allowed to get out of control.

I agree with colleagues that we need to give local communities a full range of options to deal with gulls and prevent situations from getting out of control, when the birds have started to pose a risk and when concerns have been raised. I look forward to hearing the minister’s response to the suggestions.

It is vital that children and young people have access to the right support and specialist care. I am glad that steps forward have been taken in the understanding of complex cases, intersectionality and comorbidities in neurodivergence. It can make a huge difference if a child is sent down the wrong treatment route due to misunderstandings. Can the minister say any more about the Scottish Government’s work to ensure that young people access the right pathways and that services provide adequate support?

Will the minister set out the additional flexibilities contained within the fiscal framework and explain whether he believes that they are sufficient to give the Scottish Government the financial levers that it requires?

I note that Professor Danny Dorling has published a piece that praises the Scottish Government’s work on tackling child poverty, in which he says:

“Scotland has shown what can be done and needs to be done.”

With Scotland setting an example on what can be achieved, he predicts that Westminster will be forced to act. I am keen to understand whether the UK Government has acknowledged the success of the Scottish child payment and whether there have been any discussions about creating a UK-wide benefit.

Tapadh leibh, Oifigeir Riaghlaidh. The bill makes provision for local authorities to designate areas of linguistic significance. Those will be areas in which there are important numbers of Gaelic speakers or levels of Gaelic activity and that are clearly important for the future promotion and support of Gaelic language. However, in order for that approach to meet its potential, people must be able to trust that those areas will, indeed, be designated where appropriate.

Therefore, amendments 17 and 18 seek to strengthen the provision by requiring a local authority to consider whether any part of its area contains such a significant number of people with Gaelic skills and to consider submitting a proposed designation to the Scottish ministers if that test is met.

Amendment 17 would set a period of one year within which the local authority must give that consideration. As the committee’s stage 1 report acknowledges, there is a need for urgent action to ensure that our language and our language communities are protected.

Amendment 19 seeks to add to the provisions on the guidance that can be given to help local authorities with decisions, so that it may relate, in particular, to how they determine which areas could be designated as an area of linguistic significance. Amendments 20 and 21 seek to provide a ministerial power to require a local authority to reconsider in cases in which it has decided not to submit a designation proposal to the Scottish ministers.

Designating areas of linguistic significance will be a new development, with the potential to focus strong support on areas with Gaelic activity and significant numbers of Gaelic speakers. That important process will involve local authority decision making, community input, Bòrd na Gàidhlig advocacy and the involvement of the Scottish ministers.

I have heard from constituents who are British Sign Language users who have been assessed for a care support package but cannot access it due to a lack of BSL-trained support workers. I know that they are keen to hear the outcome of the inquiry that the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee is currently holding. Can the cabinet secretary provide any reassurance to BSL users that health services are aware of gaps in provision and are focusing on closing those gaps?

I thank the cabinet secretary for that response, but I have constituents who have been waiting a very long time for a change in the law in Scotland to allow mixed-sex marriages to be converted to civil partnerships. I have engaged with multiple Scottish and UK ministers on the issue—I have even been one of those ministers. Although everyone agrees on the change, and it has already been made in England, the process of getting an order seems to be unreasonably and unnecessarily long. Can the cabinet secretary speak to why that is the case? What can be done to expedite law making for Scotland?

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the United Kingdom Government regarding improving the process for bringing forward orders under section 104 of the Scotland Act 1998. (S6O-04736)

I welcome the opportunity to highlight some of what is going on in the Highlands and Islands and in our nation as a whole. Scotland is rich with the talent, skills and facilities that are needed if we are to achieve our ambitious goal of becoming one of Europe’s fastest-growing start-up economies, and that is particularly true in the diverse landscapes of the Highlands and Islands.

Whenever I travel elsewhere, I am struck by how big business often easily overwhelms many town and city centres, where I see endless branches of Greggs, Pret a Manger, McDonald’s and other big names. I am always so grateful to return home to Harry Gow, Ashers Bakery, the Highland Weigh, One One Two, Island Larder, Bad Girl Bakery and the Redshank—I could fill four minutes listing a few more names. Those amazing local businesses are run for the local area by locals, and they are full of heart as well as truly high-quality goods and services.

However, it is not a given that we will keep them—we have to support them, and that means support from Government as well as local shoppers. That is why, despite our limited powers and an annually challenging budget, the Scottish National Party keeps offering that support. More than 95 per cent of non-domestic properties in Scotland continue to benefit from a property tax rate that is lower than that elsewhere in the UK, with more than 100,000 properties being entirely exempt.

We are leading in innovation, too. Beyond traditional sectors, the Highlands and Islands is embracing digital transformation. A couple of years ago, the Scotland 5G Centre, working with Highlands and Islands Enterprise, opened an innovation hub in Inverness to accelerate the deployment and adoption of 5G-enabled solutions. That includes pop-up networks to bring that 5G technology to geographically dispersed areas from Thurso all the way to Fort William.

We are very lucky to have all the benefits of the successful Highlands and Islands Enterprise. I see its impact every day, with many new and future workstreams as well as the outcomes of various opportunities that have been taken over the past few decades with HIE support. The northern innovation hub is a great example. Supported by the Inverness and Highland city region deal, the hub has now offered tailored support, funding, events and mentoring to more than 2,500 organisations across the Highlands, including Pat Munro, which got help with information technology projects, and Kirsty Elizabeth Studio in Fort William—a start-up that now features as a case study on HIE’s website, showcasing what Highlanders can do with a little bit of support and a massive amount of entrepreneurial spirit.

Although the challenges that economies and communities face often feel more acute in my region, that presents us with the opportunity of finding solutions that not only work for us but can inspire the rest of the country and often the world.

Unfortunately, however, is not just geographical or industrial issues that our businesses face right now—there are political barriers, too. Labour’s decision to hit all employers with a national insurance hike is reducing the ability of small businesses to contribute to our economy and forcing them to choose between reducing their numbers of employees or paying those employees less than they might otherwise might have paid them. That does not make sense. Given how much the rise is costing the UK Government itself, nobody has yet been able to explain whom the rise is serving.

Brexit, in addition to a continued stubborn immigration policy that is not based on evidence or need, is also holding us back. UK policy is out of step with what Scotland wants and needs. It is now so much harder than it needs to be to recruit vital workers and attract students. Analysis estimates that Brexit trade barriers could impact Scotland’s economy by £4 billion, with our exports being potentially £3 billion lower than if we had continued our EU membership.

We have the talent, skills and natural resources to be a major player in emerging and growing industries, whether that is renewables, space or life sciences, and the Highlands and Islands knows how to be part of them. I do not want us to miss out. To ensure that we do not, we need continued partnership with the likes of Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the University of the Highlands and Islands, alongside the full powers of an independent nation within the European Union.

I thank Bob Doris for bringing the debate to the chamber and sharing his very positive thoughts about his community, and I pay tribute to his passion for that local area. It is wonderful to hear about all that the people of Summerston have achieved, directly from their MSP, and it is clear that they have his respect as well as his support.

Bob Doris’s motion highlights

“that constructive community activism and participation is a key component in helping communities such as Summerston prosper”.

I believe that that is true, and I have seen it in many of the areas that I represent, as well.

This summer, I am looking forward to my usual packed surgery schedule and to catching up with communities that are leading in participation. From the likes of Eigg and Knoydart, which continue to demonstrate the value of community ownership as well as participation, to development trusts around the whole region that are taking control on tackling local issues by building homes, starting energy developments and identifying opportunities to take on empty buildings or vacant plots of land, there are countless examples of communities getting it right.

Team Hamish in Nairn took the tragic loss of young Hamish and his mother and has ensured that Nairn and the wider area will never forget that family. I have enjoyed and taken joy in seeing others enjoy phase 2 of the vision for Nairn every time that I am in the town—I have seen kids play and eat their ice creams as parents and guardians watch on from nearby seating.

At last week’s opening of the new Whin park, city leader Councillor Ian Brown highlighted that the renovations were the result of collaboration not just with the council and its partners but with people in the community, including children and young people, who took part in the design process. That is fantastic not only because it means that the end result is one that young people actually want but because I am sure that taking part in that process now will make it more likely that those young people will use their voices in future, speaking up and becoming people with a real stake in and passion for their community.

Where I live in Merkinch, the local nature reserve has been protected and enhanced by community activists such as Dell McClurg and Caroline Snow. I know that many local people were instrumental in clearing rubbish, planting trees and advocating preservation, and it has always been my pleasure to join them in litter picks, at meetings with the council and at events for nearby residents. It is hard to picture what the area would be like without the Friends of Merkinch Local Nature Reserve. Again, the local primary school plays a part—children have designed the benches that sit along the paths through the reserve.

Bob Doris recognised the wide impact that volunteers and regular community events can have in lifting spirits and encouraging people to feel a real connection and duty to their local area. That is incredibly important—when people do not feel a part of things, they are less likely to look after what they have and build it better.

I am looking forward to joining the Kessock ferry swim next month, and I hope to see many of our local activists, volunteers and leaders there, as well.

Once again, I thank Bob Doris for sharing the successes of Summerston, and I hope to hear that the community continues to experience the benefits of the work that has been done up until now and builds on it.