That the Parliament is deeply concerned at reports that there are at least 219 unfilled track maintenance vacancies across Network Rail in Scotland; understands that this represents a vacancy gap of 10%; believes with alarm that this raises safety concerns and has also contributed to a management-driven culture of “job and knock”, which seeks to cram and rush essential track safety maintenance work to meet performance targets; understands that this approach is leading to inconsistent management practices, which are resulting in workers being treated differently in different areas, including being subject to unfair dismissals, particularly in the Inverness area; is dismayed at reports that repeated warnings and representations by the RMT have been ignored by management and that what it sees as this toxic combination of unfilled vacancies and unfair management has now led to a dispute situation, and calls on Scotland’s Railway Managing Director to intervene and meet the RMT's concerns and resolve this dispute and its root causes.
Current Status:
That the Parliament is deeply concerned at reports that there are at least 219 unfilled track maintenance vacancies across Network Rail in Scotland; understands that this represents a vacancy gap of 10%; believes with alarm that this raises safety concerns and has also contributed to a management-driven culture of “job and knock”, which seeks to cram and rush essential track safety maintenance work to meet performance targets; understands that this approach is leading to inconsistent management practices, which are resulting in workers being treated differently in different areas, including being subject to unfair dismissals, particularly in the Inverness area; is dismayed at reports that repeated warnings and representations by the RMT have been ignored by management and that what it sees as this toxic combination of unfilled vacancies and unfair management has now led to a dispute situation, and calls on Scotland’s Railway Managing Director to intervene and meet the RMT's concerns and resolve this dispute and its root causes.
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That the Parliament congratulates Robert MacIntyre, who is from Oban, on finishing his debut season on the European Golf Tour as Rookie of the Year, making him the first Scot to achieve this since Marc Warren in 2006, and winning the Graduate of the Year award, and wishes Robert, who as a teenager played shinty for his local club, Oban Camanachd, well in his aim to join the Ryder Cup team and break into the sport's top 50.
Current Status:
That the Parliament congratulates Robert MacIntyre, who is from Oban, on finishing his debut season on the European Golf Tour as Rookie of the Year, making him the first Scot to achieve this since Marc Warren in 2006, and winning the Graduate of the Year award, and wishes Robert, who as a teenager played shinty for his local club, Oban Camanachd, well in his aim to join the Ryder Cup team and break into the sport's top 50.
Supported by: Jackie Baillie, Gil Paterson, Stuart McMillan, Alex Rowley, Sandra White, Bill Kidd, John Mason, Ruth Maguire, Neil Findlay
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That the Parliament notes the publication of the report, Surveillance Giants, by Amnesty International into surveillance of users by the internet giants, Google and Facebook; understands that the report lays out how the surveillance-based business models of Facebook and Google allow for mass harvest of users’ data in exchange for the free use of their platforms, and uses what Amnesty believes to be exploitative algorithms to prey on vulnerable people; further understands that Amnesty chose to focus on Google and Facebook due to them having become fundamental to how people engage and interact with each other, effectively a new global public square, and welcomes Amnesty International’s calls on governments to protect citizens from corporate human rights abuses by enforcing robust data protection laws and regulating "Big Tech" companies in line with human rights law.
Current Status:
That the Parliament notes the publication of the report, Surveillance Giants, by Amnesty International into surveillance of users by the internet giants, Google and Facebook; understands that the report lays out how the surveillance-based business models of Facebook and Google allow for mass harvest of users’ data in exchange for the free use of their platforms, and uses what Amnesty believes to be exploitative algorithms to prey on vulnerable people; further understands that Amnesty chose to focus on Google and Facebook due to them having become fundamental to how people engage and interact with each other, effectively a new global public square, and welcomes Amnesty International’s calls on governments to protect citizens from corporate human rights abuses by enforcing robust data protection laws and regulating "Big Tech" companies in line with human rights law.
Supported by: David Stewart, John Mason, Angela Constance, Bill Kidd, Sandra White, Stuart McMillan, Alex Rowley, Gil Paterson, Fulton MacGregor, Neil Findlay, Ruth Maguire
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That the Parliament deplores the reported recent change in the United States' official policy on Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land; believes that the new policy contradicts international law; understands that it is not within the power of the US Secretary of State to unilaterally change international law; considers that United States' support for Israel in the past has not brought stability to the region; believes that this change will serve as a barrier to achieving peace and justice, and expresses its solidarity with the people of Palestine.
Current Status:
That the Parliament deplores the reported recent change in the United States' official policy on Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land; believes that the new policy contradicts international law; understands that it is not within the power of the US Secretary of State to unilaterally change international law; considers that United States' support for Israel in the past has not brought stability to the region; believes that this change will serve as a barrier to achieving peace and justice, and expresses its solidarity with the people of Palestine.
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That the Parliament welcomes the report that was published by Amnesty International on 19 November 2019 regarding the Spanish court case against 12 Catalan leaders, which followed the referendum of 1 October 2017 and the subsequent events that took place that autumn; understands that the report examines the charge of sedition against nine of the leaders; concurs with Amnesty International that the Spanish Supreme Court's interpretation of that crime was overly broad and resulted in criminalising legitimate acts of protest; agrees with the call for the Spanish Parliament to urgently revise its definition of sedition to avoid criminalising peaceful acts of civil disobedience or unduly restricting freedom of peaceful assembly or expression, and supports Amnesty International’s call for the Catalan leaders to be freed from jail.
Current Status:
That the Parliament welcomes the report that was published by Amnesty International on 19 November 2019 regarding the Spanish court case against 12 Catalan leaders, which followed the referendum of 1 October 2017 and the subsequent events that took place that autumn; understands that the report examines the charge of sedition against nine of the leaders; concurs with Amnesty International that the Spanish Supreme Court's interpretation of that crime was overly broad and resulted in criminalising legitimate acts of protest; agrees with the call for the Spanish Parliament to urgently revise its definition of sedition to avoid criminalising peaceful acts of civil disobedience or unduly restricting freedom of peaceful assembly or expression, and supports Amnesty International’s call for the Catalan leaders to be freed from jail.
Supported by: Rona Mackay, Bill Kidd, Richard Lyle, Sandra White, Patrick Harvie, Mark McDonald, John Mason, Gil Paterson, Angela Constance, Bob Doris, Fulton MacGregor, Alex Rowley
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As an amendment to motion S5M-19922 in the name of Fergus Ewing (Sea Fisheries and End Year Negotiations), leave out from “and that the outcome” to “efforts” and insert “; recognises Scotland’s commitments under EU legislation to ensure that the marine environment is in good ecological status and that fishing stocks reflect maximum sustainable yield by 2020; is concerned that the marine environment is not currently in good ecological status and that ongoing discarding and quota limits in excess of maximum sustainable yield for 2020 may result in continued over-fishing; reaffirms its call for a robust maritime protection regime, including effective vessel tracking and monitoring technology on all Scottish fishing vessels, and calls on the Scottish Government to take a spatial approach to fisheries management, including extending and improving the Marine Protected Area network and reintroducing the three-mile limit”.
Current Status:
As an amendment to motion S5M-19922 in the name of Fergus Ewing (Sea Fisheries and End Year Negotiations), leave out from “and that the outcome” to “efforts” and insert “; recognises Scotland’s commitments under EU legislation to ensure that the marine environment is in good ecological status and that fishing stocks reflect maximum sustainable yield by 2020; is concerned that the marine environment is not currently in good ecological status and that ongoing discarding and quota limits in excess of maximum sustainable yield for 2020 may result in continued over-fishing; reaffirms its call for a robust maritime protection regime, including effective vessel tracking and monitoring technology on all Scottish fishing vessels, and calls on the Scottish Government to take a spatial approach to fisheries management, including extending and improving the Marine Protected Area network and reintroducing the three-mile limit”.
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19/11/2019
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That the Parliament welcomes the decision by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) instructing EU member states to identify on labels details of any products made in illegal Israeli settlements; understands that the ECJ made this ruling so that consumers are able to make informed choices on products that they purchase, including the origins of these goods, and agrees with Human Rights Watch that “European consumers are entitled to be confident that the products they purchase are not linked to serious violations of international humanitarian law”.
Current Status:
That the Parliament welcomes the decision by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) instructing EU member states to identify on labels details of any products made in illegal Israeli settlements; understands that the ECJ made this ruling so that consumers are able to make informed choices on products that they purchase, including the origins of these goods, and agrees with Human Rights Watch that “European consumers are entitled to be confident that the products they purchase are not linked to serious violations of international humanitarian law”.
Supported by: Patrick Harvie, Claudia Beamish, Andy Wightman, Sandra White, Bill Kidd, Ruth Maguire, Alex Rowley
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As an amendment to motion S5M-19715 in the name of Jamie Greene (The Resilience of Scotland's Ferry Network), insert at end ", and urges the Scottish Government to continue to work closely with communities, ferry users groups and the trade unions on routes and procurement to bring about enhanced public transport connectivity."
Current Status:
As an amendment to motion S5M-19715 in the name of Jamie Greene (The Resilience of Scotland's Ferry Network), insert at end ", and urges the Scottish Government to continue to work closely with communities, ferry users groups and the trade unions on routes and procurement to bring about enhanced public transport connectivity."
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As an amendment to motion S5M-19631 in the name of Fergus Ewing (Centenary of the 1919 Forestry Act), insert at end ", and calls on the Scottish Government to adopt a target of increasing forestry cover to the European average of 40%, the majority of which should be native woodland."
Current Status:
As an amendment to motion S5M-19631 in the name of Fergus Ewing (Centenary of the 1919 Forestry Act), insert at end ", and calls on the Scottish Government to adopt a target of increasing forestry cover to the European average of 40%, the majority of which should be native woodland."
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That the Parliament notes reports of the decision of a military court in Israel to convict an unnamed Israeli soldier over the killing of a 15-year-old Gazan protester during a series of demonstrations in 2018 referred to as the Great March of Return; understands that the protester was identified by Gazan officials as Othman Helles; further understands that the soldier accepted a plea deal of the charge of disobeying an order leading to a threat to life or health, punished with a “month of military labour” and a demotion in rank; considers that this sentence is wholly disproportionate to the death of Mr Helles; notes the comments by Santiago Canton, the chair of the UN Independent Inquiry on the 2018 Gaza Protests, that there were “reasonable grounds to believe that Israeli soldiers committed violations of international human rights and humanitarian law”, and calls on the Israeli Government to give what it considers proper justice to Mr Helles’ family and all of those living in Gaza.
Current Status:
That the Parliament notes reports of the decision of a military court in Israel to convict an unnamed Israeli soldier over the killing of a 15-year-old Gazan protester during a series of demonstrations in 2018 referred to as the Great March of Return; understands that the protester was identified by Gazan officials as Othman Helles; further understands that the soldier accepted a plea deal of the charge of disobeying an order leading to a threat to life or health, punished with a “month of military labour” and a demotion in rank; considers that this sentence is wholly disproportionate to the death of Mr Helles; notes the comments by Santiago Canton, the chair of the UN Independent Inquiry on the 2018 Gaza Protests, that there were “reasonable grounds to believe that Israeli soldiers committed violations of international human rights and humanitarian law”, and calls on the Israeli Government to give what it considers proper justice to Mr Helles’ family and all of those living in Gaza.
Supported by: Patrick Harvie, Mark Ruskell, Alison Johnstone, Ross Greer, Claudia Beamish, Sandra White, Bill Kidd, Ruth Maguire
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