That the Parliament notes that 21 March 2017 marked one year since the First Minister signed a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese companies, SinoFortone and China Railway No.3 Engineering Group; recognises that Scotland has a strong track record in attracting investment as evidenced by the fact that Scotland has ranked as the best place for inward investment outside London for five of the last six years; further recognises that the memorandum of understanding (MoU) was about developing a working relationship to explore potential investment and that no legal, contractual or funding obligations on behalf of the Scottish Government have been made and there has been no engagement with the company since September 2016; notes with concern the human rights record of China Railway No.3 Engineering Group’s parent company, China Railway Group; regrets that the signing of the MoU gave rise to concerns, and commits to considering and taking account of these concerns in any future such situations; agrees that the Scottish Government must always consider the human rights implications of its engagement with countries and business; believes that investment agreements should only be signed where appropriate due diligence, including on the human rights record of companies involved, has been undertaken; welcomes Scottish Government engagement with Amnesty International and other organisations on human rights ahead of international engagements, and believes that, with appropriate care, it is possible for international trade to co-exist with support for human rights around the world.
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Result 64 for, 54 against, 3 abstained, 8 did not vote Agreed
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Scottish National Party
Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Scottish Labour
Scottish Green Party
Scottish Liberal Democrats
No Party Affiliation
That the Parliament notes that 21 March 2017 marked one year since the First Minister signed a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese companies, SinoFortone and China Railway No.3 Engineering Group; notes that extensive parliamentary questioning has revealed that Scottish ministers did not undertake basic checks on the companies prior to signing; further notes that China Railway Group was blacklisted by the Norwegian state pension fund and condemned by Amnesty International, and SinoFortone has been exposed as having no serious investment record; censures the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work for failing to exercise basic diligence initially and then subsequently criticising opposition MSPs for raising basic questions; calls on the Scottish Government to apologise and take steps to alert public bodies in the UK that they may have gained false assurance about the financial credibility of SinoFortone from the First Minister’s signature on the memorandum of understanding one year ago, and further calls for the working practices of the department and the sign-off protocols of the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work to be revised to make sure that basic checks on the human rights record and financial underpinning of potential investors are made at an earlier stage.
Submitted by: Keith Brown, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane, Scottish National Party, Date lodged: Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Supported by: Jamie Hepburn, Paul Wheelhouse
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Result 63 for, 55 against, 3 abstained, 8 did not vote Agreed
Submitted by: Jackie Baillie, Dumbarton, Scottish Labour, Date lodged: Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Result 58 for, 63 against, 0 abstained, 8 did not vote Disagreed
Submitted by: Dean Lockhart, Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Supported by: Bill Bowman, Annie Wells
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, March 29, 2017