Chamber and committees

Reform members think that that was good—they are clapping.

Will the member take an intervention?

I am glad that Mr Kerr is up for a laugh. We talk about respect in this chamber and he has just shown absolutely none whatsoever.

Mr Kerr talks about condemning violence and so on, but his language—his language in particular—is to blame for everything that happened across our country over the past weekend. Surely he must take responsibility for that, look himself in the mirror and own up to that.

Think of the words you used. Be honest with yourself.

—and now he is back, demanding that Scotland trusts him again.

Talking of trust, I ask Mr Offord: is he going to say anything that the people of Scotland can trust?

His lordship’s argument is that it is slightly better than it is for somebody else next door. That is complete and utter nonsense.

Presiding Officer, I used to be in the motor industry—if someone sold you a second-hand car that immediately burst into flames, you would not turn up and ask for a second one, would you? You would not trust them, and yet Reform expects Scotland to do exactly that.

The reality is that Scotland’s future has never been built on division; it has been built on community and solidarity and, yes, it has been built by people who came here from elsewhere and made Scotland their home. The SNP amendment, rightly, recognises the enormous contribution that migrants make to our economy, our public services and our communities. In Paisley, as in every part of Scotland, we know that: our NHS knows it, our care sector knows it and our businesses know it. The only people who seem to be confused about all of that are those in Reform UK.

While Reform talks Scotland down, I prefer to look at what Scotland has achieved: free prescriptions, the Scottish child payment, investment in childcare, action on child poverty and a health service protected from the privatisation agenda that those in Reform all want.

Things are not perfect—of course they are not. No Government would ever claim that things were perfect. However, the answer to every challenge is not to point the finger at the nearest migrant, environmental policy or minority group. That is not leadership; it is political laziness. What Scotland needs is confidence in ourselves—confidence to build our communities and confidence in our ability to build a fair economy that works for everyone.

We need confidence that our future is not bound up in the bitterness and division offered by Reform UK. When I look at Reform UK, I do not see a vision for Scotland’s future; I see a party that is permanently angry at the modern world, which mistakes outrage for policy and volume for wisdom, and which seems determined to fight yesterday’s arguments while Scotland is building for tomorrow.

I will continue to believe that Scotland’s future lies not in fear, division and blame but in fairness, opportunity, love and hope. That is the Scotland that I know and it will certainly long outlast Reform UK.

16:02

Martin Luther King would have taken an intervention.

It is my intention to stay as positive as I possibly can during the debate. I have seen people I have worked with on a cross-party basis—people I have respected for years—get extremely angry about some of the language that has been used in here. I feel their pain. It is easy for us to get to that stage. The people sitting on the other side of the chamber do not seem to see that. They do not seem to understand that their words actually mean something in the real world.

Before I turn to the motion, which Malcolm Offord did not actually do, I want to say something about Scotland today—the Scotland that I know. Today, in the United States, thousands of our citizens have once again shown what Scotland is all about, and they are doing our country proud. The tartan army have travelled in numbers, as they always do, and they have shown the world exactly what Scotland is all about. Scotland is good humoured, looks for friendship and shows respect to others and their culture—and is a wee bit gallus. With a determination to enjoy themselves while making friends wherever they go, the tartan army have been fantastic ambassadors for our country. They remind people that Scotland is a confident, generous and welcoming nation—a nation that is comfortable in its own skin and happy to open its arms to others. In a world where too many seek to divide people, the tartan army have once again shown the very best of who we are.

Tonight, Scotland face five-time world champions Brazil. People often say, “It’s the hope that kills you.” The sporting legend Muhammad Ali put it differently. He said:

“If my mind can conceive it and my heart can believe it, then I can achieve it.”

That is what hope does. Hope is not a weakness; hope drives people forward. It is what makes Scotland fans believe that Scotland can beat Brazil, it is what makes communities believe that they can build better futures, and it is what makes nations believe that they can achieve more than others tell them is possible. It is hope that makes us want to win. It is hope that makes us want to overcome obstacles in front of us. It is hope that makes communities pull together, families support one another and nations strive for something better. Most of all, it is hope that makes us want to build a better future and become better people.

The spirit of hope, optimism and belief has always been part of Scotland’s heart and Scotland’s story, which is why the motion feels so out of place in our chamber. Where Scotland sees hope, Reform sees grievance. Where Scotland sees opportunity, Reform sees division. Where Scotland sees people coming together, Reform sees somebody else to blame. I have to confess that, when I first read the motion, I wondered whether it had been written in various stages during a very long night in the pub.

We know the type of motion. At first, it sounds reasonable enough: there is a discussion about economic growth, which is fair enough—we can all agree that we want a stronger economy that is good for jobs and opportunities for our young people. Then, however, paragraph by paragraph—or pint by pint—it becomes something else entirely. By the end, it reads like the ramblings of a very angry man sitting on his own in the corner of the pub, complaining about immigrants, about net zero, about equality, about young people and about Scotland—and eventually falling out with absolutely everyone else in the pub. It is less an economic strategy or a political vision; it is more “Last orders, please.”

That is the problem with Reform. For all the noise, shouting and social media outrage, what is being offered here? Division, grievance and a constant search for somebody else to blame. The motion refers to growth, but it spends most of its time talking about migrants, gender issues and culture wars. It is as if somebody started writing an economic plan and, halfway through, they decided to go on to Twitter and saw what the latest ramblings were there.

Reform members would have us believe that they are the outsiders, the anti-establishment rebels and the voice of ordinary people, but let us consider who has produced the motion. It is millionaires lecturing working-class communities about hardship. The architects of Brexit are now turning up to explain why the economy is not working—you couldn’t make it up. That takes a level of brass neck that would make some people in Westminster blush. Let us be honest: the biggest act of economic self-harm in modern British history was not net zero, low-emission zones or devolution; it was Brexit. Who is standing front and centre, waving the flags and making the promises? It is Nigel Farage—the same Nigel Farage who promised prosperity and delivered labour shortages, higher costs, barriers to trade and years of economic uncertainty—

Oh—nothing!

Will the member take an intervention?