Margaret Caldwell came into the Parliament today and spoke with my colleagues. One thing that she was clear about was that she wanted the Scottish Government to confirm that it will discuss and agree the exact terms of the inquiry with her and her family. She also hoped that her family would be given full representation within the proceedings of the inquiry. Will the cabinet secretary give that undertaking today to Margaret and her family?

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to promote community deer management on publicly owned land. (S6F-02896)

I am pleased to speak in this debate ahead of international women’s day. It is important that we recognise the progress that has been made on gender equality in recent years. Women are now more likely to be in positions of responsibility than they were even just a few years ago, but there is still an incredibly long way to go.

Progress in Scotland and across the UK has been slow. Women continue to be underrepresented in almost every area of public life and the gender pay gap has barely moved. The Poverty Alliance says that women are more likely to be living in poverty. Women’s safety is threatened far too often. Our rights can often be put at risk—even, I am sad to say, in this very Parliament, on occasion. That is just the picture here at home.

The Government’s motion focuses on global issues that women face. Internationally, in many places, there are very few signs of positive steps forward. In many parts of the world, women are still treated as second-class citizens. We will all have watched in horror as women’s rights have been ripped up in Afghanistan since the return to power of the Taliban. The tragic loss of basic standards of respect for women in that country is heartbreaking. The stories of violence are a dreadful reminder of how lowly women are still viewed in some countries. Almost as hard to listen to are the stories of the many young women who are now denied the chance to be educated and to better themselves. That is a terrible shame, and it will hold back generations of girls who have done nothing wrong. Their only offence—if we can call it that—is to have been born in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Sadly, that situation is not an isolated example. In Iran, although initially it seemed that minor improvements might happen as a result of the widespread protests over Mahsa Amini’s death, things appear to be as bad as ever. Police target women solely because of what they wear, and women’s freedom continues to be brutally restricted.

As we have seen in Ukraine, Israel and Gaza, too often it is women who bear the brunt of horrific violence against innocent people. Others have highlighted similar situations in other countries. We could all cite many more examples that should appal and dismay us, but today, as the shadow minister for justice, I want to focus my comments on violence against women here in Scotland. In this country, too, women face the threat of violence all the time. I am sure that, at one time or another, every woman in this chamber will have felt the need to alter their behaviour to keep themselves safe. I am sure that we have all been threatened and abused online and even in person.

The statistics are shocking. Police Scotland records more than 170 incidents of domestic abuse every single day and almost 65,000 instances of domestic abuse were recorded in the most recent year for which we have data. I appeal to the Government to act decisively in making the necessary changes, here, at home in Scotland, to prevent violence against women. It is a global problem, but we can make a difference by acting locally.

As colleagues have noted, the theme for this year’s international women’s day is “Inspire Inclusion”. In that spirit, I think that the most inspiring thing that the Government could do here to encourage women’s inclusion would be to prevent the violence that too often derails and destroys lives.

Today’s debate is welcome and worth while, but actions speak louder than words and women in this country need action from the Government. Scotland’s justice system is too often stacked against victims. The Government could put more victims on the Scottish Sentencing Council, thereby giving them a voice in any new proposals. Domestic abuse in Scotland is at near-record levels. The Government could agree to the proposal by my colleague, Pam Gosal MSP, for a domestic abuse prevention bill that would give survivors more support and give the police more powers to prevent assault.

Women are underrepresented in our justice system. Only one in five sheriffs, one in four judges and one in three police officers are women. The Government could act to make those professions more attractive to women and to encourage more girls to consider those occupations as future careers.

Those are just a few examples of actions that the Government could take immediately to make Scotland a better place for women.

I fully support the Government’s motion and the minister’s comments. I have already welcomed her to her role; it is good to see her here. It is right that we constantly promote gender equality internationally, that we champion women’s rights and that we look at how to make life better for women across the globe, but on international women’s day we should also urgently examine what we can do in this country to make Scotland a safer place. We should overhaul the justice system and ensure that victims’ voices are heard. We should seek to prevent violence against women and we should inspire inclusion by ensuring that every woman feels safe and secure.

On international women’s day, it is right to speak about rights for women globally, but we must be prepared to act to improve the same rights for women locally.

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the reopening of the train line south of Ayr, in light of the fire at the Ayr station hotel. (S6O-03171)

The closure of the line is having a huge impact on visitor numbers to Ayr and the surrounding local economy. The Scottish grand national will be at Ayr racecourse on 20 April, with well over 20,000 racegoers coming to Ayr for the weekend. As the grand national supports a lot of jobs, gives a substantial boost to many Ayrshire businesses and is a major event for the local economy, it is imperative that the railway be opened before it starts. After all, the current arrangements are totally inadequate, especially given the fact that no trains can travel south. What action is being taken now to reopen the line, and will the cabinet secretary guarantee that the railway will be back to normal before the Scottish grand national?

Community-integrated deer management has numerous benefits. It builds resilience and opportunities in local communities, reduces the burden of large deer contracts on the taxpayer and helps to protect the environment across areas such as the Carrick forest in Ayrshire. Local wild venison is a fantastic sustainable food source to be harvested, processed and consumed, which we must champion. I note the work of the British Association for Shooting and Conservation and the Country Food Trust, which are in Parliament this week.

Does the First Minister agree that the Scottish Government must do more work with rural stakeholders such as BASC to bolster Scotland’s venison potential?

To ask the Scottish Government how it is promoting culture outside of the central belt. (S6O-03119)

I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer and I, too, welcome the Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development to her new post.

College students around Ayrshire are frustrated about the lack of local jobs in the culture sector. A lack of opportunities forces people to either leave where they live, commute huge distances or accept that their careers may be held back. Between 2014 and 2023, however, Creative Scotland did not hire anyone beyond Edinburgh or Glasgow; the overwhelming majority of roles went to people in the capital city. Does the cabinet secretary agree that job opportunities across the public sector, including in culture, could be spread more fairly across Scotland?

I have brought the debate to the chamber in the hope that it will spur the Scottish National Party Government into action to improve the A77 and A75. The Government appears to have forgotten the importance of good local roads. It does not seem to be focused on improving critical infrastructure, and it does not put growing Scotland’s economy at the top of its list of priorities. Too often, it neglects rural areas and places outside the central belt.

With regard to the A77 and A75, the SNP has been in power for almost 17 years but, in all that time, the Government has not been ambitious enough. It has never had the vision to rejuvenate the South Scotland economy by investing enough in the roads, and it has left the region behind in the process. It has not recognised that well-connected road networks play an essential role in fostering economic growth and rural development. It has never accepted the consequences of inadequate infrastructure for rural livelihoods. It has not realised that development of the A77 and A75 is crucial in improving rural connectivity and access to essential services.

In January, the A77 action group wrote to the then Minister for Transport to sum up how local people are feeling. I could not agree more with what the group said. It wrote:

“as an area, we feel that we are the Forgotten, Ignored, Neglected, and Deprived corner of Scotland.”

Having lived in Ayrshire all my life, I feel that that is spot on. Today, therefore, I hope that we can find some cross-party consensus to finally change that. I hope that, today, the Parliament will make a commitment to improve the A77 and A75. Those roads need investment, and they need it now.

It is not only my Scottish Conservative colleagues who are making that point. This year, the East Ayrshire Council leader, Douglas Reid, said that Transport Scotland’s decision not to prioritise the Bellfield interchange for almost 20 years was “scandalous”. That is the verdict of an SNP councillor. My colleague Brian Whittle will mention that in his contribution.

I have been talking about the A77 since my maiden speech in the Parliament. The A77 connects the central belt to Northern Ireland, so improvements on that road will impact not only the south-west of Scotland but central belt businesses that send their products to Northern Ireland. That is why more central belt MSPs should be in the chamber today, calling for improvements. Every MSP should be shocked that it takes an average of 69 minutes to travel along a 43-mile stretch of road. That makes the A77 the slowest A-road in the country, with an average speed of just 37.7mph. We cannot, therefore, have any more deflections from the Government, which has dodged responsibility and shifted the blame.

There are so many potential benefits of improving both roads. It would increase safety and reduce the number of accidents, improve journey times and reduce carbon emissions. It would open up the beautiful south-west to more tourism, and it would create jobs and mean that our economy could grow more quickly. What incentive is there to start a business near the slowest A-road in the country? What incentive is there for people to move to the area when it takes so long to get to work?

Improving the A77 and A75 would be a game-changer for Ayrshire and the south of Scotland, but we need urgent action now in order to realise the benefits. We need more constructive work with the United Kingdom Government to speed up the feasibility study on the A75 bypassing of Springholm and Crocketford. We need to fast-track the improvements to both roads and look at the feasibility of fully dualling the A77.

Today, I was notified about essential structural waterproofing that will start tomorrow on the A77 at Burnfoot bridge. The work will last for seven days and will involve a full road closure over the weekend, which will impact about 4,000 vehicles a day. That will force heavy goods vehicles on to smaller B-roads, thereby increasing journey times, impacting businesses and putting pressure on the roads themselves. That would not be the case if the road was fully dualled.

We know that a better road would increase economic growth and improve our public services and connectivity, but it is about so much more than businesses and the economy; it is about saving lives. It is estimated that there is a casualty every three days on these roads. Michaela Yates lost her partner of 35 years, Tony Sheil, in a crash on the A75. Recently, she told the press:

“I don’t want any other family to go through what me and my daughters are still going through because of neglect towards the road.”

Tony left behind two daughters, Samantha-Jane and Natasha. They recently said:

“Our dad, our best friend died on the A75 that night after finishing work. He never got to say goodbye to us, and we never got to say goodbye to him. That will always hurt.”

They have also said that the road is “not fit for purpose”. Tony’s partner and his daughters are right. That is a heartbreaking example, but it is not the only one.

My colleague Finlay Carson is unable to be in the chamber today, and I wish him a speedy recovery. He has been raising the need for upgrades on the A75 for years, and he wanted to highlight today the fact that, only two weeks ago, two more fatalities were reported on that road. On Monday, there was another crash, which left three people in hospital. Tragically, there are hundreds of families in a similar position, having lost loved ones on the A75 and A77. The human cost of delays and inaction is terrible. It is leaving families suffering in pain that will never heal.

The Parliament and the Scottish Government cannot allow that to continue. For all the families who have lost loved ones and for everyone who drives on those roads every day, the Parliament and the Government must act now.

Former superintendent Martin Gallagher has described Police Scotland’s decision not to tackle minor crime as “disastrous”. That could include crimes such as vandalism, break-ins and antisocial behaviour in our communities. We often hear that levels of crime are falling, but it is estimated that 60 per cent of crime is unreported. How can the Scottish Government ensure that it is being tough on criminals when it is letting some away without investigation?