Is having Gaelic-speaking communities in the future one of the aims and objectives that you have set yourself in the framework?

Taing do dh’Ailig Cole-Hamilton airson an deasbad seo a thoirt dhan Phàrlamaid an-diugh.

’S e seirbheis air leth luachmhor a tha anns a’ BhBC, agus tha e na phàirt chudromach den bheatha aig iomadach duine san dùthaich seo.

Le naidheachd brèige agus clioc-glacach fada ro chumanta air-loidhne san latha an-diugh, tha e fìor chudromach gu bheil companaidhean fhathast ann a tha a’ feuchainn ri bhith cothromach, urrasach agus fiosrachail a thaobh nan naidheachdan a bhios iad a’ sgaoileadh don phoball.

Gun phrothaid mar chnag na cùise, gu tric tha barrachd saorsa ann airson cruthachas anns na prògraman a thèid a dhèanamh leis a’ BhBC.

Chan eil am BBC idir gun mura-bhith ge-tà. Tha cunntasan beachd ag ràdh, mar eisimpleir, gun do chaill am BBC an earbsa aig deagh chuid den phoball ann an Alba ron reifreann ann an 2014. Bha seo air sgàth ’s nach robh na daoine sin den bheachd gun robh craoladh a’ BhBC uile gu lèir neo-phàirteach air a’ chuspair.

Tha ceistean cuideachd air nochdadh o chionn ghoirid mu chùmhnantan geàrr-ùine a’ BhBC, na tuarastalan àrda aig diofar phreasantairean, agus mar a chaill seann-daoine na ceadaichean telebhisein saor an-asgaidh aca.

Ach, a’ cur nan rudan sin dhan dàrna taobh, tha mi airson beachdachadh airson greiseag air na meadhanan Gàidhlig gu sònraichte, agus cho cudromach ’s a tha seirbhis phoblach leithid a’ BhBC do mhion-chànain mar Ghàidhlig agus Cuimris.

Tha pailteas fianais acadaimigeach a’ sealltainn cho cudromach ’s a tha na meadhanan airson mion-chànain a ghlèidheadh agus a leasachadh. ’S urrainn do na meadhanan urram a thoirt, neo a thoirt air ais, do chànan, is a’ deimhinneachadh gu bheil an cànan ud buntainneach don t-saoghal san latha an-diugh.

Tha cothroman eaconamach a’ nochdadh cuideachd, leis na meadhanan a’ cruthachadh àiteachan-obrach do mhion-chànan leithid Gàidhlig. Faodaidh na meadhanan deagh bhuaidh a thoirt air ionnsachadh le bhith a’ leasachadh ghoireasan, mar eisimpleir am pròiseact SpeakGaelic a chaidh a chur air bhog an-uiridh.

Nan robh e an urra ri companaidhean coimeirsealta a-mhàin, tha deagh theans nach biodh sianal neo stèisean rèidio Gàidhlig ann idir mar eisimpleir.

Tha na prògraman aig a’ BhBC a’ tarraing dhaoine aig nach eil Gàidhlig a-steach, gu tric mar chiad cheum dhaibhsan a tha airson barrachd ionnsachadh mu chànan agus cultar nan Gàidheal. Cha chreid mi gum biodh an aon àireamh de dhaoine a’ tachairt air Gàidhlig anns an aon dòigh nan robh e an urra ri luchd saor-thoileach a-mhàin stuth-mheadhanan Gàidhlig a chruthachadh.

A thuilleadh air a’ BhBC, tha mòran anns an sgìre-phàrlamaid agam fhèin—eadar companaidhean agus daoine ag obair air an ceann fhèin—a bhios a’ dèanamh phrògraman airson a’ BhBC, a’ cur ris na tha ann de sgilean ann an sgìre dhùthchail.

Tha na sgeulachdan aig na Gàidheil a cheart cho cudromach ris na sgeulachdan aig gach sluagh eile ann an Alba. Ach ann an saoghal às aonais seirbheis-craolaidh phoblach, agus prothaid an rud as cudromaiche, cha bhiodh an aon chothrom ann na guthan ud a sgaoileadh air feadh na dùthcha.

Mar sin, ge b’ e ’s a tha Boris Johnson a’ smaoineachadh mu dhèidhinn a’ chuspair seo, tha mise den bheachd gum bu chòir am BBC—no, aon latha, an SBC—a bhith air a dhìon airson an àm ri teachd.

Following is the simultaneous interpretation:

I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for bringing the debate to the Parliament today. The BBC is a hugely valuable service and is an important part of the lives of many people in this country.

These days, with fake news and clickbait far too common, including online, it is immensely important that there are still companies that try to be fair, trustworthy and informative in the way that they broadcast the news. Without profit at the heart, there is often more freedom for creativity and for a focus on quality, in programmes that are made by the BBC.

However, the BBC is not without its faults. For example, opinion polls say that the BBC lost much of the trust of the public in Scotland before the 2014 referendum. That was due to their view that the BBC’s coverage of the topic was not completely impartial. Questions have also arisen in recent years about the BBC’s move towards short-term contracts, the high salaries of some of its presenters, and the way in which the elderly lost their free television licences.

However, to put all that to one side, I want to discuss Gaelic media in particular, and how important a public service such as the BBC is to minority languages such as Gaelic and Welsh.

A wealth of academic evidence shows how important the media are for maintaining and developing minority languages. The media can give or restore respect to the language and demonstrate the relevancy of that language to the modern world. It represents economic opportunities, too, with the media creating minority language workplaces, such as for those working in Gaelic. The media can also have a beneficial effect on language learning, by developing resources such as the SpeakGaelic project that was launched last year.

However, if it were up to commercial companies alone, there is a good chance that we would not have a Gaelic channel or radio station at all. Given the number of Gaelic speakers just now, after centuries of suppression, the BBC’s programmes give opportunities to learn more about the language and culture of the Gaels. I doubt that the same number of people would be able to access Gaelic in same way if it were up to volunteers to create media content. In addition to the BBC, there are many in my own constituency—both in companies and as self-employed individuals—who make programmes for the BBC, which adds to the skills base in rural areas.

Presiding Officer, the stories of the Gaels are just as important as those of every other population in Scotland. However, in a world without public service broadcasting, in which profit is the most important thing, there would not be the same opportunity to share those voices across the country. Therefore, in contrast to Boris Johnson, I believe that the BBC—or, one day, the SBC—should be protected for the future.

You raised the subject of online learning and the opportunities that undoubtedly exist around that, but you also mentioned the aim of attracting people to Scotland. Are there any tensions between those things? Are there any potential threats, or are you confident that you can manage the new landscape? Many of us do not know quite what the new landscape of online learning looks like. Perhaps you could say a bit about that.

Mr Hampson, in relation to Professor Nolan’s last point, but also in relation to a point that you made about how you unify international strategy and policy, one of the traditional ways of doing that is through diplomacy. You touched on Scotland’s offices abroad. How do cultural organisations get the most out of those offices? Should we have more of them?

We heard from the previous panel of witnesses that there is an opportunity now to draw together policies and activities in different strands of the Government’s work. That might be cultural activity, economic development and education. In thinking about where future offices might be, do you factor in how those offices could draw together different strands of Government activity and what the universities are saying about where they would like further activity?

Professor Nolan, you have talked about some of the stresses that the academic sector has faced in coping with events, let us say, post-Brexit. You mentioned the Northern Ireland protocol. Will you give us a picture of how much academic time or university time is being devoted to trying to resolve some of those problems? How are universities coping with that and working together to overcome the problems by trying to recreate things that used to exist or to find new opportunities?

I turn to international development, which is another area that is your responsibility, although you have a new Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development in Neil Gray. There is a lot of reciprocity in the relationships that exist between Scotland and the countries in which we work—most famously Malawi, but also others, including Zambia. There has been a review of our international development policy and a keenness on the part of Government to challenge our assumptions about how international development is done. For example, there has been talk about removing the white gaze from the way in which we do international development. Will you say a bit about what is changing so that the committee can understand that?

I thank the cabinet secretary for his opening remarks.

I do not know whether you heard the evidence from the previous panel about the benefit that our international offices provide. There is quite an interest in having more of those offices. What ambitions are there for further countries to benefit from a Scottish presence around the world?

I thank Ariane Burgess for bringing this important debate to the chamber.

As others have said, here in Scotland we are fortunate to enjoy a wealth of diverse coastlines that are rich in both natural resources and natural environment. Our coastal communities from Stranraer to Stornoway and beyond face an array of unique challenges, including the protection of the land and sea around them.

The beaches of the Hebrides are renowned for their crystal-clear waters and clean white sand but, as we have heard, unfortunately, we still face significant challenges when it comes to protecting those marine environments from litter and pollution. Issues such as lack of affordable housing, insufficient transport links and depopulation continue to threaten the resilience of our island communities against the backdrop of the climate and nature emergencies.

I was recently contacted by a constituent on the Isle of Lewis who is deeply concerned about the erosion of an embankment that previously safeguarded the foreshore adjacent to his village. Over the past 10 years, the embankment has gradually been eroded, leading to a situation that is described by a council engineer as “critical”. If no action is taken to protect what remains of the embankment, the inland area forming part of the machair—a type of low-lying fertile land that is unique to the west coast of Scotland—risks becoming permanently under water.

Coastal erosion is just one thing that will endanger our coastal communities in the future—and it is clearly having a detrimental impact already. It is just one of the many difficulties that we need to urgently address to preserve and protect our coastlines and the communities who live by them. The Coastal Communities Network provides an important platform for communication and support between the residents of coastal locations across Scotland. I share its belief that coastal communities themselves are best placed to harness the most effective long-term solutions for the sustainable management of the seas around them. The management of our seas must include input from all local stakeholders, not least those who make their living from marine resources. Our marine environment must be protected while continuing to play its part in the diverse local economies of our coastal areas.

Representing the Coastal Communities Network in my constituency is the organisation Clean Coast Outer Hebrides, which has been working tirelessly since its formation in 2018 to tackle the plastic waste that, sadly, washes up on our many beautiful beaches. Collaborating with the local authority, schools, community organisations and individuals, it organises beach cleans that engage local communities in its work and raise awareness of the importance of marine conservation, with a focus on educating and involving younger people in particular.

That spirit of collaboration is essential in local communities and across the network of coastal communities, as well as at local and national Government levels, in order to best protect and conserve our marine environment for the generations to come. As I have said, it is important that the economic resilience of our coastal communities is fully considered in any and all policy. The voices of people in the fishing industry must be listened to as fishers continue to adapt their practices to become more sustainable.

The restoration and sustainable development of our coastal areas should be community focused and community led, building on the on-going work of organisations such as those in the Coastal Communities Network, in order for us to play our part in tackling the climate and nature emergencies.

I begin by thanking Rona MacKay, Angus Campbell and Naomi Bremner for the work that they have done in my constituency on behalf of the Uist economic task force to bring the petition to the committee.

Island communities are all reliant on lifeline transport links. They are vital to every aspect of our lives. However, the organisations that are tasked with delivering those services have virtually no one with experience of living in the communities that they serve on their boards. The petitioners’ submission rightly states that community and place should be at the heart of good government.

Given that the principal mission of organisations such as David MacBrayne Ltd, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd and Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd is to serve island communities, it is not in the interests of good governance of the boards of those organisations to be as remote from their service users as they currently are. I say that as no criticism of existing board members, but I do not think that any of them probably faces the experience that I, fairly enough, face of hearing people’s views about CalMac Ferries every time I go to buy a pint of milk.

Since the committee last considered the petition in early September, I led a members’ business debate in the chamber on reserving seats for islanders on the board of CalMac. There was a large degree of cross-party consensus on the need for more representation of islanders. The then transport minister, Graeme Dey, signalled that the Scottish Government is open to changes, and in responding to a recent parliamentary question of mine the minister also stated that he had tasked the newly appointed chair of David MacBrayne to look at ways of getting an island-based presence on the boards.

Briefly, one other development that is relevant to a petition that you have just considered is that HIAL has recently confirmed that it will be taking a different approach to its ATMS plans on air traffic control jobs. The issue with HIAL also partly motivated the petition that we are presently discussing. The announcement comes after five years of bitter dispute with the affected communities and the air traffic controllers trade union. It is fair to speculate on whether the process would have been as long, acrimonious and protracted if more board members of that organisation had been based in island communities.

In closing, I will borrow a point that Rona MacKay from Uist made to me. Last year, Uist and Lewis both won titles of social enterprise places of the year. That is a testament to the large number of social enterprises on the islands, which each have unpaid boards of islanders. Islanders are not strangers to boards and nor, relevantly, is there any shortage of islanders who know about seafaring. There exists a large and healthy degree of involvement in public life in the islands. It would be in everyone’s interests if that could be utilised on the boards of the organisations that deliver lifeline services to them.

I urge the committee to keep the petition open and to push for changes in the criteria for board appointments in the organisations that we have discussed to give much more prominence to the experience of living in an island community.